


Story of Tarnum

by volbound



Category: Star Trek RPF, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies), Star Trek: The Original Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:41:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 56,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22824256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/volbound/pseuds/volbound
Summary: I put together a fan-made story you may find interesting.  It follows the rise of a Klingon leader named Tarnum around the time of Star Trek VI the movie but in an alternate Universe.  In this Universe, the Alpha Quadrant is more war-like.  The Klingons and Romulans just lost a war against the Federation and her allies during the time roughly around TOS.  The Klingon Empire is in chaos and civil war.  A young Klingon leader named Tarnum emerges to put down the Gorn rebellion and slowly push back the enemies of the Klingon Empire and launch a war for the entire Alpha Quadrant.  It has detailed battles and contains references to other fictional races from the Master of Orion Universe as well as cameos of characters from the real Star Trek Universe.Note:  This was designed to read like a historical war summary and not necessarily a standard fiction story.
Kudos: 1





	Story of Tarnum

Story of Tarnum  
I. Klingon Civil War

Factions:  
House of Bleda  
House of Martoc  
House of Pashta  
House of Duras  
House of Gorkin  
Bulrathi Empire  
Gorn Hegemony  
Romulan Star Empire  
Cardassian Union  
Reges Systems

In the year 2259, the Klingon Empire surrendered ending the great Klingon-Romulan War against the Federation. The Klingon Empire felt betrayed by their leadership as they still held systems in Federation territory and by the Romulans for their early surrender. The treaty was even worse as border systems were handed over to the Federation and the Bulrathi Empire along with the Ursa system was regranted independence. The proud Klingon Empire fell into civil war. Mow’ga the Chancellor/Emperor was overthrow and his house destroyed. A war broke out for the next line in thrown with the House of Bleda and House of Duras fighting for the throne. Soon other large factions emerged including the House of Pashta that took over several mining colonies and the House of Gorkin which advocated a peaceful relationship with the Federation who they now saw as the power of the Galaxy.  
In the year 2278, the Romulan Empire decided to invade some bordering systems to subdue the Bulrathi and bring order to the Klingon Empire. The House of Bleda allied with the Romulans to receive armaments to fight the House of Duras.  
In the year 2281, the Cardassian Union invaded the Klingon Empire and seized several border systems. Meanwhile the Bulrathi and Mrrshans allied with some local Klingon Forces to slow the Romulan advance. Rebellions also broke out in the Gorn Hegemony (starting 2271) with Klingon troops being driven off the homeworld of Gorn in 2280. At this time the House of Martoc was formed with the aim of defeating the Cardassian invaders and securing Klingon territory integrity and honor. The Klingon Empire itself was in chaos, the House of Duras was driven from Qonos by he House of Bleda. The House of Pashta functioned as a separate nation expanding its borders and building its own force without aiding the rest of the Empire.  
Tarnum, was a Klingon Captain in the Gorn Hegemony that was promoted during this time by the General in charge. The force Tarnum took over was an unaligned Klingon Imperial Force that was stationed in the Gorn Hegemony to maintain Klingon control. A significant amount of the infantry of this force was still composed of loyal Gorn but their loyalty was dubious because they were fighting their own kind.  
Tarnum’s forces were ill-equiped to handle the war at this point. They were no longer supplied by Qonos and many of the leaders and ships had deserted to fight in the Klingon Civil War or were redeployed to try to stop the Cardassian advancd. The Cardassians had not only occupied the borderlands but had previously defeated a large Klingon Force lead by Tarnum’s past commander, Char’toc at the Battle of Donatu. 

Battle of Donatu  
Star Date: 2282  
Outcome: Decisive Cardassian Victory

Cardassian Force: 6 Cruisers, 16 Destroyers, 22 Attack Ships, 6 Frigates, 9 Transport Ships

Casualties: 2 Cruisers badly damaged, 4 Destroyers destroyed, 3 Destroyers badly damaged, 12 Attack Ships destroyed, 4 Frigates Destroyed, around 100 deaths

Klingon Imperial Forces: 1 Ktinga Battlecruiser Class, 9 Bird of Preys, 4 D7 Class Cruisers, 7 Destroyers, 2 Scout Ships  
House of Martoc: 1 D7 Class Cruisers, 3 Bird of Preys

Casualties: 1 Ktinga Battlecruiser, 6 Bird of Preys, 4 D7 Cruisers, 6 Destroyers, 1 Scout Ship, around 400 deaths (all apart of KIF)

Char’toc was given command of the fleet. He was confident of victory with the numbers and with his new Kting Class Battlecruiser which was larger and more powerful than the D7 Class. The House of Martoc fleet was led by Geron Martoc and would arrive late to the battle. 

Gul Malt was the Cardassian Commander chosen to make the invasion of Klingon Territory. He had seized numerous worlds and wanted to occupy Donatu. Before the battle he knocked out the Star Base and system defenses but had to retire 2 Cruisers and 1 Destroyer due to damage. 2 Destroyers were knocked out of action during the siege. The Klingon Forces arrived too late to save the system defenses and would be unable to utilize them in the battle.

Char’toc sent out all 4 of his D7 Class Cruisers with 6 Destroyers to engage the Cardassian fleet on sight. Klingon weaponry was expected to be superior to the Cardassians. The Cardassians employed their 6 Frigates and 22 Attack ships to soften the fleet first before the Cruisers and Destroyers could engage. The Klingons successfully knocked out 4 of the Frigates but lost a Destroyer and a Bird of Prey in the process and one of the D7s suffered major damage and fell back. Char’toc after discussions with commanders sent his flag ship to the front with the remaining Destroyer and a Scout Ship. Gul Malt, instead of engaging, fell back and send another wave of his Attack Ships at the enemy fleet. 10 Attackships were destroyed but the Klingon initial force suffered major damage with another D7 being knocked inoperative and 3 Bird of Preys destroyed. Gul Malt continued to keep his capitol ships out of the way while his smaller attack ships hit at the slower Klingon Capitol ships. Char’tocs’ flag ship arrived to rally his fleet and he pushed forward. However, Gul Malt continued to fall back. At this time, Geron Martoc’s fleet was spotted at the distance. Fearing, that this new Klingon force would be able to link up with the current fleet, Gul Malt decided it was time to attack and sent his Cruisers and Destroyers to attack first the Klingon Destroyers and then the Cruisers. The mass attack on the Klingon right wing knocked out 4 of the 5 Destroyers. Surprisingly the two remaining Cardassian frigates also managed to put enough fire power with the attack ships to destroy a D7 Cruiser trying to halt the Cardassian fleet. Char’toc tried to rally his Cruisers to aid his destroyers but it was too late, the Cardassians had numbers and Char’toc paid for it with his life. The Ktinga was destroyed along with the remaining D7 Class cruiser. Of the initial imperial fleet only two badly damaged D7 Cruisers, 2 Destroyers, and a Scout Ship remained that fell back and joined Geron Martoc’s fleet. Gul Malt issued a pursuit and destroyed the two badly damaged D7 Cruisers at the cost of 2 Destroyers. The remaining Klingons fled the field. 

Outcome: Disastrous defeat for Klingon Empire. Cardassian occupation secured. Cardassians occupied several more Klingon Systems facing no opposition but stopped fearing overextending their lines and out of fear that the Federation would intervene in the conflict. The House of Martoc was the only Klingon opposition to Cardassians but did not have the forces to truly stop the fleet only using hit and run tactics with individual Bird of Preys. Qonos and the feuding families were criticized for not stopping Cardassians. The Houses became unpopular with Klingon people which would later aid Tarnum’s rise to power. 

######

Cardassians and Romulans carved out chunks of the Klingon Empire but did not want to drive deeper and get embroiled in the Civil War (outside of Romulus’ aid to House of Bleda). The Klingon Empire was literally torn into fragments between the fueding families. Tarnum with a small fleet that included only 2 D7 Cruisers, 8 Destroyers, 2 Bird of Preys, and about 10 D5s and several scouts continued the conflict first with Gorn and then later with Cardassia. 

The Gorn Campaign 2283-2287:  
Tarnum was appointed command of all the Klingon units in Gorn Hegemony space after Char’toc’s death. He had courageously fought in numerous defenses against Gorn troops and earned the trust of his men. He was declared to be a rising hero by Klingon forces in the region but was still unknown throughout the Klingon world. This would change.  
The Gorn had recently liberated their Homeworld and the Klingons moved their base of operations to Cestus III. Tarnum decided to re-invade the world of Coen. This world recently fell to the Gorn rebels. Tarnum could only use 1 D7 Cruiser and 4 Destroyers in the assault. The Gorn had twice the number of forces on the ground and in space.

Coen Campaign  
Star Date: 2283  
Outcome: Decisive Klingon Victory

Tarnum’s Force: 1 D7 Cruiser – Command Ship, 4 Destroyers, 1 Bird of Prey, 2 Scout Ships, 5 Attack ships, 3 Transport Ships, around 50,000 troops (5,000 being Gorn)

Casualties: 1 Destroyer damaged, 1 Scout Ship Destroyed, 1 Attack Ship Destroyed, around 15,000 casualties in troops

Gorn Hegemony: 1 Starbase, 4 defense turrets, 2 Cruisers, 4 Destroyers, 6 Frigates, 10 Attack ships, around 150,000 troops plus 300,000 local militia from the planet  
Casualties: Star Base captured with defenses destroyed, 1 Cruiser Destroyed, 4 Destroyers destroyed, 4 Frigates Destroy and 2 Captured, 10 Attack Ships destroyed, around 95,000 casualties on planet of civilians and soliders, mostly from bombardment.  
Description: Although outnumber, Tarnum’s counter-attack caught the Gorn by surprise who had seen the Klingons on the retreat for some time and were starting to believe that victory was at hand. Tarnum’s attack was bold as he was greatly outnumbered but he quickly won the confidence of the Klingon warriors with his aggressiveness and boldness. He decided to use his Bird of Prey to carry an early strike force past the enemy fleet and hit the planet first. His fleet would cover the transports. The Bird of Prey was the fastest ship in his arsenal and Tarnum would be famous for his tactic of using Bird of Preys to drop special strike forces off in a blitzkrieg like attacks. Tarnum decided to lure the weaker ships out, first, and destroy them while avoiding the Cruisers. Upon arriving the Gorn fleet was located near the starbase with many of the ships in dock. Tarnum attacked the defense turrets with his Cruisers and Destroyers from a distance. The shields of Tarnum’s fleet were able to hold since his ships only stayed within firing range of one of turret at a time. Two turrets were destroyed before the Gorn fleet intervened and forced Tarnum away. At the same time as this diversion, Tarnum succeeded at putting 20,000 additional troops via Transports along with the Strike team from the Bird of Prey on the planet near a city called Kzel. The troops quickly began seizing the regions around the area. The Gorn fleet gave chase and the Attack ships countered first. Tarnum sent out his 5 Attack ships and covered them with his Destroyers. The Gorn ships were quickly dispatched with only 1 Klingon Attack Ship destroyed. The Bird of Prey having dropped the team was order back to the lines but remained cloaked. Tarnum planned to use the ship to surprise the enemy. The Gorn grew impatient and wanted to destroy the remaining transports that had not landed on the planet. The Gorn dispatched their cruisers along with 3 Destroyers and 3 Frigates to hit the Klingon right flank and knock out the Klingon fleet. Tarnum ordered his Destroyers to fall back while his Bird of Prey and Cruiser came out of cloak and hit the 3 Frigates destroying them and then retreated. The 3 Destroyers quickly began to out run the Cruiser this allowed Tarnum to cloak both his D7 and his Bird of Prey which went behind the Gorn Destroyers and attacked the Cruiser together. Surrounded, the 3 Gorn Destroyers broke off the attack and fled rather then aiding their Cruiser. The Gorn commander ordered the remainder of his fleet to attack. However, by this time Tarnum had numbers and the equipment. He quickly destroyed the Gorn Cruiser and then attacked with his full fleet while his transports unloaded their men. The Gorn commander seeing the hopelessness of his attack turned and fled to the starbase. The Bird of Prey destroyed his last destroyer before it reached the starbase. Tarnum fired at the turrets with his Destroyers and D7 from a distance taking out the other two and then focused on the starbase. The Gorn commander fled with his Cruiser but his frigates were knocked out and captured by Klingon marines. The battle of Coen was over with the capture of the starbase. Tarnum took advantage of mass attack, distance attack, and ambushes to win the space battle. He then focused on the planet battle. He ordered smaller divisions to flee and engage in guerilla fighting while he massed a main force of 35,000 to face 100,000 Gorn soldiers. He used orbital bombardment to break up the Gorn lines and forced the militia to flee. The Bird of Prey hit several Gorn power facilities cutting their supplies off. 35,000 Klingons routed 50,000 Gorn at the Ambush of Kita Pass. The Gorn began to realize that even with numbers, the lack of supplies, space bombardment, lack of power, and the determination of the enemy was too much. 

Outcome: The Gorn Army surrendered by the end of 2283. Tarnum had seized the planet within 3 months. Tarnum continued his campaign to the Gorn Homeworld. The Gorn fleet was severely crippled and could not defend their dockyard from capture. Ship to Ship actions favored the Klingons and were also helpful in destroying numerous Gorn ships. The battle at Coen broke the back of the new Gorn fleet and paved the way for Tarnum’s easier campaign against the Gorn Home System. 

########

Tarnum was able to mass his fleet for an assault on Gorn by 2284. He hoped that seizing the Homeworld would push the Gorn into surrendering and end the rebellion. Tarnum now had a fleet that could match the remains of the Gorn fleet. Tarnum had captured a Gorn shipyard a year earlier and seized 2 Destroyers that were almost completely built. He finished the construction while at the same time scrapping the remainder of the ships captured. The Gorn had been in the process of rebuilding a large fleet to guarantee their independence. Had they been successful, Tarnum would have not been able to hold his position in Gorn space. The space battle over Gorn was pretty much parity of forces. Tarnum knew if he could win this battle, with supplies cut off to Gorn, the planet would not need to be conquered. The Gorn were a hardy soldier and Tarnum did not have enough infantry to take the planet.

The Campaign for Gorn:  
Year: 2284-2286  
Result: Decisive Klingon Victory

Tarnum’s Fleet: 2 D7 Cruisers, 2 Bird of Preys, 9 Destroyers, 6 D5s, 6 Scout Ships, 3 Frigates, 25 Fighters, 10 Transports; 2 million soldiers over the course of campaign.

Casualties: 1 D7 Cruiser severely damaged, 2 Destroyers lost, 2 Frigates lost, 2 Scout Ships lost, 3 D5s lost, 1 D5 severely damaged; over 50,000 deaths

Gorn Fleet: 1 Star Base, 8 Turrets, 1 Cruiser, 1 Captured Bird of Prey, 5 Destroyers, 2 Previously Captured Klingon Destroyers, 6 Frigates, 50 Fighters, 6 Bombers; Over 10 million trained soldiers and another 300 million estimated militia  
Casualties: 1 Star Base destroyed, 2 Turrets destroyed the rest made inactive, 1 Captured Bird of Prey lost, 4 Destroyers lost, 4 Frigates lost, 33 Fighters lost, 5 bombers lost, 12 fighters captured, over 6 million dead  
Description: The famous Gorn rebel, Larr had taken command of the Gorn fleet after the failure of the previously commander at Coen. The Gorn Rebellion held 5-6 worlds but their fleet was severely weakened after the capture of the shipyard and previous space battles, including minor ship to ship skirmishes. The Gorn had massacred most of the Klingon families living on their homeworld which infuriated the Klingons in Tarnum’s fleet. Despite this Tarnum warned against atrocities since a significant amount of his infantry was now Gorn (200,000 troops) and he hoped to use Gorn as fighters in future campaigns against other Klingon enemies. This time the Gorn fleet was ready for Tarnum but they had several disadvantages. They did not know how to properly control the Klingon ships they captured. The main Gorn strategy was usually a quick charge with all ships into battle but Larr had learned from serving in the Klingon Imperial Force during the war with the Federation and her allies. In fact, Larr’s record with the KIF encouraged Tarnum to prevent his death in the battle if possible in hopes of using him as a commander in the future.  
Tarnum hoped once again to draw out the Gorn fleet and destroy it but after several attempts at attacking turrets, Larr’s forces stayed near the Starbase defending it. Tarnum lost a destroyer in these early attacks with other ships having taken some minor damage. Tarnum used his Bird of Preys to attack Turrets on one side in a surprise maneuver. The Gorn fleet sent 3 Destroyers after them. With the fleet weakened, Tarnum made an all out attack on the Starbase. The casualties were high on Tarnum’s fleet but he also destroyed the starbase defenses and a chunk of the Gorn fleet. Larr’s ship was captured during the fight along with Larr. The Gorn remaining fleet retreated without the defenses to cover them. Tarnum set up a blockade around the planet and deployed his troops to the South Continent which had less people and the city of Karsha, which had served as the former capital during Gorn’s occupation by the Klingon Empire. It had great facilities and could be defensible against a far larger outside force. Klingon air supremacy ensured their control over the system. The Gorn tried to assault Karsha on numerous occasions taking heavy casualties. Tarnum assaulted 4 other Gorn worlds and captured them while maintaining the blockade on the Homeworld. After a failed assault and heavy bombing on the three cities holding major rebel bases, the Gorn finally surrendered after 2 years of bloody fighting.  
Outcome: The Klingons controlled the South Continent and defeated the Gorn navy with help from air attacks. The Klingons also held Karsha throughout the campaign but the rest of the Homeworld was still held by overwhelming Gorn forces. Larr survived the battle and would become a faithful commander for Tarnum in the near future. A couple of Gorn worlds continued to hold out after the Homeworld fell but Tarnum eventually subdued the entire Hegemony by March 2287. The long struggled with the Gorn was wrapped up in 4 years with inferior forces by Tarnum. The response in Qonos by Chancellor Terrag of the House of Bleda to the victory was “that is what the Klingons are supposed to do.” Tarnum’s reputation grew a little but he was still not seen as a threat to any of the other Klingon factions and was still relatively unknown in parts of the Klingon Empire far from Gorn Space. However, in all the Klingon systems near the Gorn including the regions controlled by the House of Martoc and House of Gorkin, Tarnum’s fame began to rise as a great general and hero. Tarnum worked to rebuild the Gorn lands and win their trust. He had avoided bombing civilian targets, if possible, and treated prisoners fairly. He displayed Klingon Honor and courage to the Gorn. He portrayed himself not as an occupier but a defender of the Gorn against Cardassian and Romulan threats. He described the Gorn and Klingons as brother warrior races. He promoted a destiny of the two great warrior races standing together against the other powers of the Alpha Quadrant. This emphasis on the warrior brotherhood helped to win the Gorn over to Tarnum’s side. The Gorn would rather be ruled by the Klingons than any of the other races. A large number of the Gorn forces were conscripted into Tarnum’s force for his planned war with Cardassia. 

The end of the Cardassian Occupation:  
Tarnum decided to go after the Cardassians next. The other factions of the Klingon Empire seem more interested in fighting each other than aiding the Klingon worlds conquered by Cardassia. The only faction that was trying to liberate the region was the House of Martoc, however they could not afford enough ships to combat the Cardassians. Tarnum approached the House of Martoc to form an alliance. Tarnum was surprised that he was offered a place in the House which he quickly accepted. This move allowed Tarnum access to more ships and soldiers as well as systems positioned on the front with Cardassia. Tarnum specifically requested a large number of Bird of Preys as well as cloaking devices that he planned to put on transports. Despite the support, Tarnum was not granted a large amount of cruisers, instead another force was sent by the House of Martoc under the command of Geron Martoc who had experienced fighting Cardassia and was the heir to the House. Tarnum was at first disappointed but then saw it as an opportunity to gain influence in the house and to develop Geron as a possible co-commander.  
Tarnum proposed an ambitious plan that was at first opposed by Geron Martoc and Larr. He wanted to send his cloaked Bird of Prey assault teams to take worlds behind the Cardassian fleet in an effort to envelop the Cardassian forces. These worlds could be fortified, he argued against Cardassian reinforcements and would cut supplies off to the Cardassian fleet in Klingon space. The plan would be very similar to future assaults by Tarnum including the Andorian and the Romulan Campaigns. 

The Cardassians had recently got embroiled in a border dispute with the Breen Confederacy. The developing trade war between the Gnolams and Ferengi was also capturing their attention. The Cardassians were hoping to gain influence over the Ferengi systems. Gul Malt had been reassigned to fight the Breen while a new leader, Legate Simo, was put in charge of the Klingon territories. He commanded Five Cardassian Orders in the region as well as a powerful Cardassian fleet. He spread his fleet into three parts, one based at Donatu, one based at Ty’gren, and one based at Chimatu. The force at Chimatu was the largest and it was the base for Legate Simo and held the Twelfth Order, one of the most renown Cardassian units in the Union. The Cardassians had grown a little anxious hearing of the defeat of the Gorn hegemony and resupplied their territories for fear that the Klingons may try to attack. The Thirty-Second Order arrived to increase the Cardassian forces to 6 Orders and the fleet received a couple of Cruisers and several Destroyers. 

Tarnum began his assault in October of 2289. He first engaged in ship to ship ambushes with his Bird of Preys and Destroyers. He then sent assault teams and managed to liberate three Klingon worlds located near the Cardassian borders which surprised Legate Simo who had heavily fortified the forward worlds but neglected the worlds behind him. Tarnum continued to squeeze Legate Simo and managed to take three more worlds soon after. Simo, losing a large number of ships, finally moved his entire fleet to Chimatu. This was what Tarnum was pushing for and pulled back the raids and focused on positioning his fleet around Chimatu. He captured the Ty’gren and Cheta Aui systems soon after. He then prepared to surround Chimatu with his fleet and the assistance of Geron Martoc’s fleet. The Klingons, despite having inferior numbers, were able to build turrets and other defensive equipment around Legate Simo’s base. Missile fleets continually hit the defenses and dockyard at Chimatu keeping Simo’s fleet damaged and trapped. The situation became dire when news arrived that the Tenth Order at Donatu was defeated by Klingon troops and militia. The Klingon citizens in the area were rallying behind Tarnum and Tarnum was able to take the planets with less troops then expected. By April of 2291, the Cardassians only controlled 3 systems in Klingon space. 

Legate Malt, who had received a promotion, was called back to relieve Legate Simo’s force. The Cardassian High Council tasked Legate Malt with destroying Tarnum’s fleet. With a sizable force that included 8 Cardassian Orders, Legate Malt entered Klingon Space and assaulted Geta Minor V first. There was no opposition to the fleet but the ground war quickly began to take its toll. Legate Malt ordered an entire Order down on the planet and it was still failing to pacify the Klingon and Gorn troops who were being aided by Klingon Civilians. Legate Malt quickly noted that this was a different Klingon Empire that he was invading. The Klingons had rallied and their tactics had changed significantly. Legate Malt continued to the next world, Begat III in the Begat system were the planetary defenses had a toll on his fleet. To make matters worse, the Begat defenses were supported by three Bird of Preys who kept attacking the flanks of his fleet and flying away. He ordered chase and lost two of his Destroyers in an ambush. Finally, he ordered his Attack Ships out and they were successful in driving the Bird of Preys away. Again, the ground battle was costly and another Cardassian Order was left on the planet to deal with the Klingons. By this time, Tarnum began to rally his fleet to meet Legate Malt. He chose a place of great significance to intercept the Cardassian fleet, Donatu. 

Second Battle of Donatu:  
Year: 2289  
Outcome: Decisive Klingon Victory

Klingon Forces: 1 Ktinga Cruiser, 4 D7 Cruisers, 2 Gorn Cruisers, 12 Bird of Preys, 18 Destroyers (3 Gorn), 300 Fighters, 10 Scout Ships, 12 Frigates  
Casualties: 1 D7 Cruiser severely damaged, 1 Gorn Cruiser destroyed, 4 Destroyers destroyed, 2 Destroyers severely damaged, 100 Fighters lost, 2 Frigates destroyed, 1 Bird of Prey destroyed chasing Cardassian ships, around 380 casualties

Cardassian Forces: 7 Cruisers, 22 Destroyers, 200 Attack Ships, 30 Frigates, 40 Transports  
Casualties: 4 Cruisers Destroyed, 10 Destroyers Destroyed, 150 Attack Ships lost, 8 Frigates Destroyed, 8 Transports destroyed during chase. Over 520,000 casualties (mostly from destroyed transports)

Description: Legate Malt lost a Cruiser to several Bird of Preys right before the action. He also had to leave a third Order behind on the planet of Yil II which had turned into another bloody fight. The Cardassian morale was low but seeing the Klingon fleet finally engaging in a real battle excited the Cardassians and gave Legate Malt hope that the campaign could be successful.  
Tarnum and his forces were eager for battle as well hoping to exact revenge on Legate Malt for the previous Battle of Donatu. Tarnum read closely the reports from the last battle and had equipped a large number of new Klingon fighter craft into his force. He received them from both the House of Martoc and the House of Gorkin, who was coming around to supporting the campaign as well (although slightly). Tarnum had equipped some Gorn ships to support his lines as he had to leave ships blockading the Cardassian fleet at Chimatu. He had quietly pulled his fleet away from Chimatu leaving ships under Geron Martoc with instructions to make Legate Simo believe a far more sizable force was still blockading Chimatu. This was aided by the fact that most Klingon vessels, at the time, could maintain cloak for extended periods of time. The lack of movement by Legate Simo’s blockaded fleet contributed to Tarnum’s victory.  
As Tarnum expected, Legate Malt did not boldly charge his forces at Tarnum but rather tried to draw them in with an ambush using Cardassian Attack ships and Frigates. Tarnum avoided deploying his Bird of Preys for fear of them being knocked out by these attack ships but rather sent out his fighters with support from his Destroyers and Frigates. The sizable number of fighters and the laser fire from the Destroyers and Frigates caused Legate Malt to realize his plan wasn’t working and he withdrew the Attack Ships with severe losses. He also noticed that even in the attack waves where he did deal damage and in one case destroyed a Klingon Destroyer, the Klingons seemed to be disinterested in charging his line.  
Tarnum secretly deployed his Bird of Preys around Malt’s forces to his rear during the attacks. After Malt pulled back he decided to hit Tarnum’s right flank which Tarnum decided to weaken intentionally to draw Malt to attack. The attack started out successful with Cardassian Cruisers driving back the Klingon forces and destroying Two Destroyers but then the Bird of Preys started the supprise attack on the Cardassian flank causing chaos in the Cardassian vessels as they scattered in every direction. The Cardassian fleet began to break up and Tarnum pushed forward with his cruisers engaging the Cardassian cruisers one at a time with his full fleet and taking them out one by one. Legate Malt’s flagship was destroyed and the Cardassian ships went to warp fleeing back to Cardassian space. 

Outcome: The Bird of Preys continued pursuit knocking out several Cardassian Destroyers and another Cruiser. Tarnum rallied the Capitol ships and withdrew back to Chimatu while sending the damaged ships to Ty’gren for repair. This battle sealed the fate of Cardassians. They could not mobilize their fleet trapped at Chimatu and the Cardassian forces sent to reinforce Chimatu were broken and forced to retreat. 

The Victory at Donatu was the death blow to the Cardassian war effort. Legate Simo had no hope for rescue. Legate Malt was dead and only half his fleet managed to limp back into Cardassian space. Legate Simo upon hearing the news reiterated to the Cardassian Central Command that he could not hold out for very long. Most of Simo’s fleet was damaged beyond the ability to go to warp or effectively put up a fight. The Klingon Bird of Preys had also been very effective at knocking out fleeing Cardassian ships. A run for Cardassia would be a massacre for Simo’s fleet. The Cardassians did not have the forces to spare and hundred of thousands of Cardassian troops were now stuck behind Klingon lines fighting on the planets that Legate Malt had initially invaded. The Cardassian Central Command contacted Tarnum to discuss peace.  
Tarnum, out of insult to the Cardassians, decided to have the peace talks at Donatu as a reminder of his victory. Despite the insult, Tarnum was generous on the terms of his treaty. He allowed Simo’s fleet to return to Cardassian lines gathering all the Cardassian troops along the way. All Klingon territories were to be handed over to Tarnum. The Cardassians were also to provide the Klingons with significant mineral resources to pay for war damages. Other than that, no Cardassian territory was required of Tarnum, and the Cardassian fleet and soldiers were able to return to the Union. Many Klingons disagree with the “Treaty of Donatu” but Tarnum did not have the forces to occupy any Cardassian worlds and had a more important goal of unifying the Klingon Empire and dealing with the Romulans on the other side of the Empire. A simple non-aggression pact would deal with Cardassia although Tarnum put in special provisions to allow for Klingon aggression against other powers without Cardassian involvement (notably the Federation and Romulan Star Empire). Klingons suffered over 5 million casualties in the renewed Cardassian campaign to the Cardassian 4.2 million casualties. It was a bloody affair that would only be a sideshow of the wars to come. 

Rise of Tarnum:

The victory of Cardassia captured the attention of the entire Klingon Empire. The House of Martoc made the wise decision after the victory to take advantage of the popular support by making Tarnum the head of the House. Gethral Martoc stepped down to invite Tarnum to head the household with the understanding that Tarnum would remember and reward the House’s past support. Shortly after taking over the House of Martoc, Tarnum signed a treaty uniting the House of Gorkin with his forces as well. The House of Gorkin had wanted to restore the Empire and bring peace and therefore approved of Tarnum’s handling of the Cardassian war. Later they would regret their support and become Tarnum’s biggest thorn when Tarnum went to war with the Federation. The House of Duras and House of Bleda both feared Tarnum who was now seen as their greatest threat. The House of Pashtu also worried that Tarnum would invade so they approached Tarnum and initially offer their support for an invasion of Qonos if he agreed to leave their home planet and system, Mempa, alone and continue to allow their autonomous rule should Tarnum take the whole Klingon Empire. Tarnum realized that the Klingon Empire was his for the taking.  
His first campaign was against the House of Duras. The House of Duras had a weakened fleet resulting from their successful campaign to retake Qonos in 2287. The House of Duras was also behind on tactics mostly using Cruisers to combat the enemy in fleet to fleet battle. They were not prepared for the hit and run or ship to ship tactics used by Tarnum which weakened their forces significantly. Tarnum invaded the House in November of 2290 and by January 2291, Tarnum had captured half of the Duras systems. On February 2, 2291, Tarnum attacked the main Duras fleet at Pheben.

Battle of Pheben  
Date: 2291  
Outcome: Decisive Victory for Tarnum’s force

Tarnum’s Forces: 2 Ktinga Cruisers, 8 D7 Cruisers, 23 Bird of Preys, 14 Destroyers, 10 Frigates, 350 Fighters, 50 Bombers, 2 Scout Ships  
House of Pashtu Forces: 1 D7 Cruiser, 5 Destroyers, 6 D5s  
Casualties: Tarnum command ship severely damaged, 1 D7 Cruiser destroyed, 2 Bird of Preys destroyed, 1 Destroyer destroyed, 1 D5 destroyed, 23 fighters lost, 2 bombers lost. Around 180 deaths. 

House of Duras: 1 Ktinga Cruiser, 7 D7 Cruisers, 16 Bird of Preys, 17 Destroyers, 6 Frigates, 100 Fighters, 50 Attack Ships, 14 D5s  
Casualties: Command ship severely damaged, 3 D7 Cruisers destroyed, 6 Bird of Preys destroyed, 1 Bird of Prey boarded and captured, 2 Destroyers destroyed, 9 D5s destroyed, 20 Attack ships and 55 fighters lost. The remainder of fleet defected to Tarnum or fled the battle. Around 450 deaths.

Description: Tarnum wanted to win this battle quick with little casualties. The House of Pashtu, as a part of their agreement, provided a small number of ships to support Tarnum. Other ships had also defected to Tarnum during the campaign. The push towards Pheben and eventually Qonos had met very little resistance other than individual ship to ship fighting and a few loyal holdout troops on the planet. Most of the population and regular army supported Tarnum and quickly defected to his forces. The House of Duras pushed for a battle in fear that their entire faction would defect and decided to meet Tarnum at their old capitol of Pheben. The battle would be a one-sided affair. Most of the Duras fleet’s loyalty was dubious as best. The legends and stories of Tarnum’s victories had spread to their ranks and the average Klingon now viewed Tarnum as the ruler that could restore the Empire. The Duras commanders and family knew this and they needed to end the legend before he cut the feet out from under them. The Duras decided to charge Tarnum’s lines as soon as possible for fear that ships would defect to him. They wanted to go straight for Tarnum’s command ship. The tactic caught Tarnum off guard and almost drove him to defeat. He rallied his ships and pulled back his command ship after it took heavy damage. The Bird of Preys turned the battle as they were able to cloak and re-cloak at weak points of the Duras lines. The Duras Bird of Preys where used as nothing more than support ships for their cruisers as the imagination of the Duras commanders was limited. The Duras overextended into the Tarnum’s lines which allowed Tarnum’s force to envelope their ships. The resulting chaos led to many ships of the Duras fleet announcing surrender or fleeing the battle. The Duras capitol ship took a severe beating and was forced to surrender. Upon hearing the news, Tarnum sent out a general hail asking all Duras ships to stand down. The fighting ended with Tarnum victorious the Duras family surrendered to Tarnum and agreed to recognize him as Chancellor and to fight with him against the House of Bleda and the Romulans. 

Tarnum entered Qonos unopposed and was proclaimed Chancellor. He then prepared his fleet for an offensive against the House of Bleda, Bulrathi Empire, and Romulan Star Empire in hopes of restoring the Klingon borders. This campaign would not end until the surrender of Romulus in 2296. 

The Bulrathi-Mrrshan Campaign

Tarnum was now Chancellor and was recognized by a clear majority of Klingons, only the House of Bleda stood against him. The Reges Systems that bordered the systems that fell to Romulus were holding out against Romulan, Bulrathi, and House of Bleda forces. These systems quickly announced their loyalty to the new Chancellor and offered their assistance. Tarnum hoped for a quick breakthrough to liberate these systems. Tarnum was successful with this move as Bleda’s forces defected in mass. Many of the Klingons in Bleda’s forces considered the support from Romulus to be unhonorable. Others had only sided with the House of Bleda because of their hatred of the Duras regime. With the Duras regime gone, they found Tarnum to be more favorable. Tarnum was too popular for Bleda to mount any resistance and the family was assassinated by their body guards and the entire Bleda fleet surrendered to the Chancellor. The House of Bleda lost all power that day and became a dishonored sect of the Klingon Empire due to their relationships with the Romulans and recognition of Romulan occupation of Klingon Systems. Tarnum was surprised that he faced no real resistance from the Klingons that supported the House of Bleda. The civil war was effectively over and Tarnum’s campaign now began to focus on the foreign enemies of the Empire. Tarnum decided to invade the Bulrathi Empire first due to its proximity between Tarnum and the Romulan forces. He hoped to seize Ursa quickly.  
The Bulrathi Empire had won its independence partly with support from Romulus who saw them as an ally against Klingon forces in the system grab. The Bulrathi had also grabbed local systems from the Klingons. Upon news of Tarnum being appointed Chancellor, the Bulrathi feared invasion by a rejuvenated Klingon Empire and sought an alliance with the Mrrshan Empire. The Mrrshan’s happily accepted the alliance fearing they would be invaded as well. The Romulans also vowed assistance but were slow to response since Romulans were currently caught up in conflicts with the Darloks and Meklars as well as still having large fleets occupying Silicoid systems.  
Tarnum succeeded in getting an alliance with the Darlok Coalition against the Romulan Star Empire but failed to get the Meklar to negotiate due to their xenophobic nature.  
On April 2293, Tarnum invaded the Bulrathi Empire first hitting systems that were formally Klingon. The Bulrathi offered to surrender those systems for peace but Tarnum pushed forward demanding the full surrender and subjication of the Bulrathi Empire to Klingon rule. The Bulrathi and Mrrshan began to mobilize their forces but Tarnum’s invasion was too fast. He took the Xeen system quickly. Xeen was a heavily fortified system where The Bulrathi and Mrrshan fleets had originally plan to rendezvous. The system also possessed some of the best manufacturing facilities and shipyards in the Bulrathi Empire. The loss was followed up with Tarnum being able to engage and destroy fleets that were previously in route to the Xeen system before its fall. Ursa was besieged by July of 2293 and land invasions begun. The Bulrathi government fled. Tarnum continued his fleet campaigns and entered Mrrshan space. Most the Mrrshan fleet had been ambushed and destroyed by Tarnum’s fleet near Xeen. The Mrrshan’s used heavy system defenses and were able to rally the remains of their fleet. However, their Homeworld fell by October 2293. On November 2nd, 2293, the Bulrathi government surrendered along with the military. The Bulrathi Empire was incorporated once again into the Klingon Empire. The Mrrshan Empire was also entirely under Klingon controlled although a powerful rebel movement would continue throughout the Tarnum Wars. By January 1, 2294, the Klingons fleet had moved to join their brethren attacking the Romulans. One of the greatest failures of the Romulan Commander, Admiral Li Sigut, who was the commander of all Romulan forces on the Klingon front, was not actively aiding his allies. Without the Bulrathi and Mrrshans to challenge the Klingons, the Klingons could meet the Romulans with their full force. 

The Klingon-Romulan War: 

Beginning around June 2293, Klingon divisions had come to the support of Klingon forces in the Beres System in their war with the Romulans. They had re-taken four Klingon systems by December of 2293 but had not seriously damaged Li Sigut’s force which refused to allow his fleet to enter into a major engagement with the Klingons. The Romulans started a slow fall back. Li Sigut recognized that he was now facing a serious threat from a united Klingon Empire. He continually pleaded for more and more reinforcements from Romulus. The Romulans pulled ships from other fronts and began to mobilize another fleet under Admiral Dir Sirak, brother of Gael Sirak, the Romulan general on the Darlok front who was considered the best Romulan military commander. The Romulans had pushed back the Darloks but now suffered attacks from Meklar fleets that were inflicting serious damage on the Romulans and causing considerable problems. The Romulans were not ready for a fight with a new, unifed Klingon Empire under a new ambitious and clever ruler.  
Tarnum began his offense on January 8th pushing into the Klingon Systems under Romulan Occupation and into Romulan space itself. His objective was to cut off Li Sigut from Romulus and surround Li Sigut’s force into a pocket between his own forces and the forces under command of Geron Martoc which were supporting the Reges System fleet. He labeled his own fleet the Ursa Fleet and the forces to the south the Reges Fleet. (Also, sometimes called the North and South fleet reflectively although there is no literally north and south in space, on a Klingon map at the time, it appeared that way).  
The Romulan support fleet began to get battered by the Klingon Bird of Prey wolfpacks which destroyed supply lines, stray warships, and freighters. It was a war that Romulus had never faced before, a war of speed. Tarnum captured ten Romulan systems by the end of January using advanced attack teams on Bird of Preys and the newly built Kytar speedy transports. The Romulan system of Bezen was captured on February 1, 2293 by a large Klingon Fleet under Tarnum. The planetary fighting was especially brutal with over 5 million Klingon casualties and 22 million Romulan casualties. It was one of the foremost Romulan worlds and the strongest planet closest to Li Sigut’s fleet. Li Sigut, retreated deeper into Romulan Space not knowing that the Klingons were between him and Romulus now. His scouts discovered the fall of Bezen by February 12, 2293 and Li Sigut feared the worse as he was nearly surrounded by two Klingon fleets. He decided to engage some forward elements of Geron Martoc’s fleet which were by now pushing into Romulan Space having liberated the Klingon systems. Li Sigut hoped to break Martoc and force Tarnum to pull out of Romulan space to face him. 

Li Sigut meet Geron Martoc at a small Romulan Border System called Phaeda.

The Battle of Phaeda  
Year: 2293  
Outcome: Draw (Tactical Klingon Victory)  
Klingon Forces: 2 Ktinga Cruisers, 10 D7 Cruisers, 7 Bird of Preys, 28 Destroyers, 31 D5s, 10 Frigates, 200 Fighters, 100 Attack Ships, 15 Bombers  
Casualties: 3 D7 Cruisers lost, 2 D7 Cruisers heavily damaged, 2 Bird of Preys lost, 10 Destroyers lost, 2 Destroyers heavily damaged, 10 D5s lost, 1 Frigate lost, 80 Fighters lost, 50 Attackships lost, 2 Bombers lost, over 1500 Klingon casualties

Romulan Forces: 4 Romulan Cruisers, 10 D7 Cruisers, 29 Romulan Bird of Preys, 38 Romulan Frigates, 300 Attack Fighters.  
Casualties: 1 Romulan Cruiser lost, 5 D7 Cruisers lost, 1 D7 Cruiser abandoned and self-destruct due to damage, 12 Romulan Bird of Preys lost, 10 Romulan Frigates lost, 1 Romulan Frigate damaged but managed to escape, 55 Attack Fighters lost. 

Description: The Romulan fleet was still heavily focused on the D7 Cruiser design provided to them by the Klingons in the earlier war against the Federation. The Romulans had updated their old Bird of Prey class (not to be confused with Klingon Bird of Preys) and had even armed them with cloaks although they did not use them in the battle. Fortunately, Geron Martoc, was surprised by the attack and was not able to use his Bird of Preys effectively as they had been used in earlier battles by Tarnum. The 2 Ktinga Cruisers were decisive in the combat as the new improved Klingon Cruisers matched up well with any of the Romulan ships.  
The Romulans, as in past battles, sent their Bird of Preys to attack first hitting several Klingon destroyers on the parameter of the fleet. Geron Martoc at first had difficulty rallying the fleet as it scattered and the battle turned into a ship by ship fray. Geron managed to rally his Cruisers forward and attack the Romulan Cruisers head on. It was classic Cruiser on Cruiser line fight which was common in the Klingon-Romulan war against the Federation. The Romulan D7 Cruisers did not have all the updates the Klingon D7s obtained although they did possess the updated Romulan Disrupters. Despite the effectiveness of these disrupters, their armor, hull, and shields were inferior and Klingon ships found them easier to penetrate. The Klingon fleet began to take heavy damage but they rallied behind the Cruiser line and began to push the Romulans away from the battle. After three hours of heavy fighting, the Romulan fleet pushed back fearing too many losses. Admiral Li Sigut attacked again with his Bird of Preys but these were driven off by a Klingon wave of Fighters, Bombers, and Attack Ships. Geron Martoc sent a fleet of Destroyers that were also driven off and damaged by the Romulan Attack Fighters and guns from their Cruisers. Neither fleet could get the other fleet to budge. Geron Martoc decided not to withdraw considering it tactically favorable to keep the Romulan Fleet occupied while Tarnum’s forces continued to push deeper into Romulan space. 

Outcome: Admiral Li Sigut, realizing that he could not stay and fight for fear of being eventually surrounded and destroyed by other Klingon fleets withdrew back deeper into Romulan space hoping to fight a breakout battle with the Klingon forces of the Ursa fleet under command of Tarnum. The Reges fleet was still in-tact, although it was slowed by the damage sustained at Phaeda. The battle itself was a tactical Klingon victory as it allowed Tarnum to continue his push into Romulan space. The battle was not a clear victory for the Klingons but the war was quickly being won by Tarnum’s maneuvering of forces. One thing to note was the effectiveness of the Romulan Attack Fighters which appeared to be superior to the Klingon fighter in firepower and speed but also possessed weaponry that could challenge cruisers if the Attack Fighters attacked in mass. The Klingons lost 4 Destroyers in the Destroyer attack quicker than expected. The Romulan Bird of Preys also proved to be powerful variants for Destroyers and effective fighters especially in mass. The Romulans possessed strong light forces, but the cruiser classes were very ineffective against Klingon capital ships once Geron Martoc rallied his own Cruisers against them. 

News reached Tarnum within hours about the battle and he began to order his fleet to turn and push to reinforce Geron Martoc. Tarnum would not be there in time but he hoped to destroy the Romulan fleet if it was victorious over the Reges Fleet. However, his advisors warned him that the Romulans were gathering greater fleets at Romulus no doubt to engage Tarnum. Tarnum reached out to his new Darlok allies. He propsed a new war plan of linking up with Darlok forces on the otherside of the Romulan Empire and crush the empire utterly. His advisors again warned him that it would take countless billions of troops to capture all the major Romulan worlds. Tarnum then proposed a strategy similar to his maneuver with Gorn, he ordered his troops to take starbases, moons, and lightly populated outposts. The invasion forces could also focus on taking lightly populated continents on the populous worlds if possible. The goal would be to besiege these planets and cut them off from the enemy fleet, effectively eliminating them from the fight. The defenders would eventually realize the hopelessness of their situation and surrender. There had no been no strategy of rapid conquest in past wars. The Great Powers fought over border systems not expecting to conquer a full empire because of the manpower requirement. Tarnum proposed a new radical method that could take down large Empires rather quickly without the requirement of large numbers of infantry and transports. This strategy, obviously, required full control of space and the defeat of the enemy fleet.  
Tarnum and his war council received news of the outcome of the Battle of Phaeda and adjusted their startegy. Tarnum stated that he no longer considered Admired Li Sigut’s fleet to be a threat or major campaign objective. However, he did intend to split a small portion of his fleet under the Gorn Larr to contain Li Sigut’s fleet. Tarnum ordered Larr to use tactics to make his fleet appear as a larger fleet. Tarnum and his war council spent several hours debating the direction of the forward fleet and how it should meet the Darlok lines, Tarnum finally stated that there should be no other outcome other than to go for the throat. Tarnum wanted to take Romulus. At this point the council grew silent. The thought of taking the enemy homeworld appeared impossible to them. However, as Klingons, they admired Tarnum’s boldness. He had not let them down to this point. Tarnum then stated that it can be done and that in order to keep the advantage of this war, he had to destroy the newly formed Romulan fleet and break the Romulans at their homeworld. He then boasted that full vengeance was about to belong the Klingons for they will topple the Romulans for betraying them in the first great war and for invading their lands after the war. Tarnum was quoted as saying, “The Romulans took Ghesia; the Klingons shall take Romulus.” (Ghesia being a very small and insignificant Klingon outpost that the Romulans captured along the border).

The Romulus Campaign

Tarnum had caught the Romulans with their pants down. They had no fleet to stop Tarnum’s advance and were surprised at the speed of the advance. They had never seen blitzkrieg tactics of Tarnum’s force before and had thought he would have taken awhile to get through the border systems. A week after the Battle of Phaeda, Carraya’s moon and starbases were captured while the planet was cut off from the Romulan Empire. The shipyards destroyed. It was an effective campaign. Without a fleet, any system was fair game to this fate. Dir Sirak was dispatched with a small fleet in hoping of making a stand at the Chaltok system. Meanwhile, Gael Sirak was called back from the Darlok front. The Romulans had nearly taken the Darlok capitol of Nazin but now were required to withdraw and rally a fleet at Romulus to fight the Klingons. It was a disappointing retreat to many Romulan forces because it took years to make these gains against the Darloks. Gael Sirak only took a small portion of his fleet with him keeping the rest behind to hold the Darlok front. His brother meanwhile was smashed at the Battle of Chaltok. Tarnum brought his fleet in fast and captured the starbase before Dir Sirak could respond. The starbase defenses and Klingon fleet appeared to be too much Dir Sirak’s fleet so he retreated towards Romii, the last major system between Tarnum and Romulus. More systems continued to fall and Romulan shipping came to a near halt under the weight of attacks from Klingon Bird of Preys. The Klingon raiders began to even wreck havor on the shipping around Romulus. Gael Sirak’s smaller fleet was attacked on the way to Romulus and took severe damage. News came that Dir Sirak abandoned Romii and that the Klingons now held control of that system. The attack on Romulus was coming.  
Li Sigut wanted to join up his forces but fought another indecisive battle against Larr’s force and was forced to retreat to the Benora system to repair his fleet. Geron Martoc and Larr’s forces now surrounded Li Sigut in a chain of 5 systems. This force was no longer capable of aiding the Romulan war effort. Romulan diplomats began peace overtures but the Klingons refused to listen.

The Battle of Romulus  
Year: 2295  
Outcome: Klingon Victory

Klingon Forces: 5 Ktinga Cruisers, 20 D7 Cruisers, 33 Bird of Preys, 27 Destroyers, 20 Frigates, 12 Scout Ships, 1200 Fighters, 300 Bombers  
Casualties: 2 Ktinga Cruisers, 8 D7 Cruisers, 16 Bird of Preys, 13 Destroyers, 8 Frigates, 3 Scout Ships, 800 Fighters, 123 Bombers all destroyed. Numerous other ships seriously damaged but able to be repaired in interwar period. Around 9000 deaths.

Romulan Forces: 5 Romulan Cruisers, 12 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 29 Romulan Bird of Preys, 40 Frigates, 3 Scout Ships, 1 Battlestation, 2 Star Bases, 600 Attack Fighters, over 50 Freighters and civilian ships armed with Romulan Disrupters or other weaponry.  
Casualties: Nearly entire Romulan fleet, several civilian ships surrender as well as 23 Romulan warships once battle appeared to be hopeless. No Romulan Cruisers survived the battle. Both Gael Sirak and his brother Gir Sirak killed in the fight. 

Description: The Romulans were desperate by this point. Trade had been cut to Romulus and it was now cutoff from its own empire. Romulans feared that Remus would defect in the course of the battle and deployed over 5 million additional troops to the moon. Any ship in the system was being armed to fight in the upcoming battle. Tarnum did not want to wait long for fear that the Romulans would build more armaments to fight the battle. Tarnum knew this battle would likely decide the war. He had, by now, captured a little under a third of the Romulan Star Empire and had shocked the Romulan people and their own military with his rapid advance. It was the speed of his advance and not a direct battle that had so far pushed the war in Tarnum’s favor. This was the first major fight that Tarnum would have with the Romulans and Tarnum put a great deal of time in the planning process. He knew that Gael Sirak was a veteran and was used to cloaked forces from fighting the Darloks. Tarnum decided to not cloak his ships but to bring them in the open. Tarnum hoped that Sirak would expect cloak ships and still waste ships defending his flanks. Tarnum decided to use a cruiser attack this time and knock out the Romulan Battlestation and the Romulan cruisers early on. He had studied the Battle of Phaeda and noticed that the Klingon Cruisers had the advantage in ship to ship engagements with the Romulan cruisers. He would use his Bird of Preys and Destroyers to support the assault and hold off the outside forces while his fighters focus on the deadly Romulan attack fighters.  
It was August 16, 2295 that Tarnum began the assault. He headed directly to attack the Romulan Battlestation hoping to lure out the fleet and at the same time make the Battlestation inoperative as it was one of the greatest threats to his fleet. The attack came quickly with the Klingon Bird of Preys attacking the Battlestation first and drawing the fire while his cruisers got close enough to use their damaging phasors and torpedos to knock out the stations weaponry and shields. This was accompanied by an invasion of the Battlestation by Klingon marines. The Romulans had used a wing of their Bird of Preys to cover the Battlestation but Klingon numbers destroyed all of the Romulan Bird of Preys with minor casualties. Gael Sirak brought his fleet out and rushed to the station but was too late to save it with his cruisers. Tarnum focused an attack on the Romulan cruisers that had rushed to save the Battlestation. Sirak realizing his mistake in trying to take the fleet head on and being late to use the defenses of the Battlestation, withdrew his fleet after taking casualties. Sirak withdrew to another starbase nearby hoping to use its defenses to cover against Tarnum’s cruisers. Tarnum, despite taking damage earlier thought it would be best to attack Sirak head on. Sirak hoped for this as well and sent out his Attack Fighters and Romulan Bird of Preys to lure Tarnum in. Tarnum sacrified numerous fighters and Bird of Preys to break thew the Romulan forces to the starbase. This time he surrounded Sirak’s fleet and destroyed the starbase early on with his cruisers, losing a Ktinga cruiser and several more ships at the hands of Sirak’s fleet. Sirak realized that the Klingons were ok with losing chunks of their fleet in this case to achieve a greater defeat on the enemy. Unable to pull out from his position without abandoning a large chunk of his fleet, Sirak ordered a fight to the death. The casualties ran high. Tarnum kept order on his ranks and focused fire on all of the Romulan cruisers, first, which were destroyed quickly including Sirak’s own ship and then on the Romulan Bird of Preys. The Romulan fleet was destroyed after four hours of fighting. A few ships surrender. The Klingon fleet was decimated in the fight but had enough power to take the last star base mostly by firing their missles from a distance until the defenses were down and the cruisers could get close and embark their troops. 

Outcome: Tarnum sent out an offer for unconditional surrender to the Romulan Senate after the battle but did not hear back at first. Remus was captured the following few weeks by a force of 10 million Klingon and Gorn Troops from newly arrived Klingon transports. The Romulans had no way to get out news of the outcome of the battle to their other forces due to Klingon efforts at blocking the transmissions. Tarnum bombed a few sites on Romulus, noticeable power arrays and military bases hoping to scare the Romulans into surrender. He was successful and on September 2, 2295 the Romulan Senate finally accepted the surrender. On September 8, 2295; Li Sigut surrendered his force to Geron Martoc and Larr after hearing the news of the fall of Romulus. 

Tarnum quickly rushed to capture the Romulan system of Unroth for fear of revolts. News spread rapidly throughout the Romulan Star Empire of the fall of Romulus. Tarnum also sent fleets towards Darlok space capturing or forcing numerous systems to surrender along the way. By 2296, he had pinched in the remaining Romulan forces on the Darlok front between his force and the Darlok. They surrendered on October 9, 2296. The Romulan force along the Silicoid front also announced its surrender on October 8, 2296 after Klingon forces entered their area of space, although a small faction of the fleet never officially surrendered and retreated deeper into Silicoid space forming a Romulan resistance faction that would come to play in the future. 

The news throughout the Romulan Star Empire was despair and humility. Tarnum disbanded the Romulan senate. Tarnum then put into place a new Romulan government with both Klingon and Romulan senators. He called the new state the Klingon-Romulan Empire as a puppet state of his greater Klingon Empire. He tried to rally the Romulans as he did the Gorn by advocating that he would destroy Romulus enemies and build an Empire that would last forever. Romulans were recruited into a new military force that was being built up secretly to attack the Federation. Romulan shipbuildling increased under the Klingons and Romulan shipyards and technicians were trained to build Klingon warships as well as Romulan warships to be placed into a diversied battle fleet. Romulans were rewarded with powerful positions by showing their loyalty to the Klingons.  
The Darloks were given a significant number of Romulan systems that included the Romulan System of Rator. These systems made up almost a quarter of the Romulan Star Empire. Their systems were now consitituted in the Romulan rump state. 

Across the Klingon Empire and their occupied worlds, Tarnum now became a legend and a god to the Klingons. He was proclaimed Emperor and Chancellor for life upon his return to Qonos in April of 2297. The rest of the sector began to take notice. The United Federation of Planets quickly instituted a build-up of their fleets on both the Romulan and Klingon borders fearing that they would soon be the next target. The Orion Syndicate began a major military buildup being now surrounded on two sides by Klingon forces with the fall of Romulus. The Tzenkethi Empire instituted a major warship building program. The Bolians began to mobilize their fleet. The Cardassian Union and Elerian Empire also instituted military reforms and aggressively occupied systems around them to provide resources and bases to fightoff a possible future Klingon invasion. Soon nearly every major power in the sector would be pulled into a great conflict which would become known as the Great Tarnum War. 

Build-up to War

Tarnum spent 8 years subduing his realm. There were pitched battles with the Mrrshans and Romulans but he managed to keep his large Empire stable. Most of the time and effort was spent on a major military build-up. The Klingon Fleet in those eight years was increase to four-times its previous size. Also, a new Romulan-Klingon fleet was built in the region of the former Romulan Star Empire with the intention of coordinating an attack on the Federation. Over two billion Gorn, five billion Romulans, and five hundred million Bulrathi were conscripted into the KIF and the RKIF (Romulan-Klingon Imperial Force). Starbases, fleet yards, and supply stations were built all along the Klingon/Romulan-Federation border. Meanwhile, Klingons migrated by the thousands to these newly conquered areas and began to build local populations, even on Romulus.  
Tarnum was a great orater to his people but did little in the diplomatic arena. He made his future intentions for conquest clear with the build-up and did nothing to alleviate the growing fears from the other powers. As a result, the other powers followed suit and built-up their fleets and defenses. The Federation began to play the diplomatic game as well. Alliances were quickly signed by the Federation with the Bolians and Orions who feared being invaded. The Federation also got Trilar to join the Alliance although their distance from the front would be problematic. None of these allies were very large and the Federation needed a stronger power. Federation diplomats tried in vain to get the Tzenkethi, Elerians, and Cardassians to join this Alliance. They did have some success with the Psilons although they, just like the Trilarians, were very far from the Klingon Empire. Trill signed an Alliance with the Federation in 2301 and began the pursuit of membership in the Federation. The Meklar did not allow the Federation envoys into their space. The Xenophobic race would not be negotiating with anyone outside their borders. Similar results were returned from the Silicoids who were technically still battling small Romulan forces in the systems the Romulans had occupied prior to the Klingon invasion of Romulus and therefore technically at war with the Klingon-Romulan Empire.  
Tarnum watched the Federation diplomatic game closely. His greatest weapon was the fear of his fleet. The Cardassians appeared reluctant to join the Alliance and cited to their Non-Aggression treay with the Klingon Empire. The Elerians would not join the war without their Cardassian allies. The Tzenkethi also feared the rising Klingon Empire but entertained the idea of an Alliance only if the Federation was willing to attack the Klingons.  
Tarnum had no treaties with the Tzenkethi and feared fighting a dual front with the Tzenkethi and the Federation. The Tzenkethi had a powerful fleet and an Empire, at the time, as large as the Cardassian Union. Tarnum knew this threat had to be cut off, first, before he could launch his larger war. He spent the last year of the eight-year peace building up secretly on the Tzenkethi border and deploying fleets into the region. He engaged in several diplomatic inquiries with Tzenkethi to only make them more of an antagonist and to rally his Empire’s public opinion against the Tzenkethi Empire. Tarnum was too “honorable” to surprise attack a nation so he wanted to lure them to war the honorable way. Tarnum often insulted the Tzenkethi and argued that any minor indiscretion or cultural mistake with the Tzenkethi diplomats was an insult to Klingon honor. He disputed with them over unsettled systems near their borders. The Tzenkethi took the beligerance as Klingon arrogance over their recent victories but avoided pushing for war with the Klingons. Despite best efforts by the Tzenkethi, the clamour for war began to increase among the Klingons. The Klingon citizenry focused on the Federation and a desire for revenge from the previous war. This was the last enemy not avenged by the Klingons under Tarnum. However, Tarnum felt that the Klingons should not go to war with the Tzenkethi threat still open. He successfully began to persuade the Klingon populace that the Tzenkethi were a new enemy that should be met on the battlefield. He argued the point that the Tzenkethi supported the Federation in the first war. Tarnum drew up battle plans and by 2304, the Tzenkethi had enough and the Klingon population as well. War was declared by Tarnum on the Tzenkethi Empire and a large KIF began to assault the border systems by April of 2304. 

Invasion of Tzenkethi Empire

The Tzenkethi preferred ship to ship action and raids over the large fleet engagements used by Cardassians, Romulans, Bulrathi, the Federation and other great powers of the day. This made the war unique for Tarnum. Tarnum decided to avoid using his Bird of Preys in the war as a result and called off a large amount of the Bird of Preys once discovering that the Tzenkethi were not going to meet him in fleet action. Tarnum carefully keep his ships together. The work horse of the Klingon fleet in this action was the D7 Cruisers which came into heavy use. A large contingent of Gorn were sent to assist in the Tzenkethi campaign as the Gorn Hegemony ws icloser proximity to Tzenkethi systems than even Qonos.  
Klingon fleets of Destroyers and D7s began to push back the Tzenkethi forces and focused on capturing star system after star system. The campaign of blitzkreig proved still effective for Tarnum here even without breaking behind enemy lines. However, this adjusted blitzkreig campaign was slower and relied heavily on capitol fleets. This Klingon strategy would be adopted and followed heavily by the Federation in the later years of their war with the Klingons. By September of 2304, the Klingons had captured planetary bodies in over 30 star systems although they found territory hard to hold with the Tzenkethi always counter attacking. Tarnum ordered them to continue the campaign for the Tzenkethi homeworld. He thought once the capitol fell, the resistance would slow. The Tzenkethi, realizing they could no longer retreat decided to face the main KIF fleet near the Tzenkethi homeworld. The decision to engage the Klingons was also partially motivated by the mobilization of Federation forces in July of 2304. The Klingons were redeploying along the Federation border to prepare for a larger war that was by now inevitable. The Federation did not want to see the Tzenkethi totally defeated and were ready to intervene to stop Tarnum with or without the Cardassians and Elerians at their side. Tarnum was determined to take Tzenkethi before starting the war with the Federation so he could pull out forces, Tarnum made the mistake of thinking the Tzenkethi would surrender after a decisive battle and the fall of their home world.

Battle of Tzenketh  
Date: October 5, 2304  
Outcome: Klingon Victory

Klingon Forces: 6 Ktinga Cruisers, 34 D7 Cruisers, 40 Destroyers, 8 Bird of Preys, 31 Frigates, 1200 Fighters, 300 Bombers, 12 Anti-Missile Ships  
Commander: General Chang/Emperor Tarnum  
Casualties: 2 Ktinga Cruiser, 13 D7 Cruisers, 16 Destroyers, 1 Bird of Prey, 10 Frigates, 200 Fighters, 39 Bombers, 1 Anti-Missle ship all lost. Numberous other ships damaged and put out of action for months.

Tzenkethi Forces: 8 Tzenkethi Battlecruisers, 22 Tzenkethi Light Cruisers, 31 Destroyers, 13 Fast Attack Frigates, 500 Interceptors (Fighter-based craft), 1 Star Fortress with 20 Turret Guns, 3 Support Star Bases  
Commander: Ji Myle  
Casualties: General Ji Myle killed, All 8 Tzenkethi Battlecruisers destroyered, 20 Tzenkethi Light Cruisers lost, 28 Destroyers lost, 10 Fast Attack Frigates lost, all 500 Interceptors lost, 1 Star Fortress lost, 2 Star Bases lost the third captured. Tzenkethi Battle Fleet effectively destroyed.

Description: The defenses of Tzenkethi were heavy and most of the Tzenkethi fleet had mobilized for the battle including 8 of the 10 Tzenkethi Battlecruisers in existence. The Battlecruisers had superior firepower to anything the Klingons possessed although the Ktinga Cruisers came close. 1 large Star Fortress with heavy defenses watched over the home planet. The Tzenkethi were armed to the teeth and ready to put up a last-ditch fight to stop the Klingons.  
The Klingon forces were sizable as well. The large number of cruisers in the fleet gave the fleet the name, “The Grand Fleet.” Tarnum was not present with the fleet but was issue commands through subspace channels from his command post in Tzenkethi space. General Chang was the commanding general of the KIF based in Tzenkethi space and Tarnum hoped to give him the command and regency over the Tzenkethi systems once this battle was won. The fleet attacking Tzenkethi included veterans from the Gorn and Romulan campaigns. Tarnum was overjoyed because he had hoped to draw the annoying Tzenkethi into a single battle that could break their spirit to fight.  
At the early outset, Tarnum hoped to lure the Tzenkethi Battlecruisers away from the planetary defenses and knocked them out of action with his superior numbers. He did this by attacking another smaller planet closer to the Sun which was defended by a single Star Base. Ji Myle, not wanting to risk his fleet, wisely allowed the Klingons to destroy the Star Base with no significant casualties. Frustrated, Tarnum knew he needed to attack Tzenkethi’s defenses themselves before Ji Myle would respond. He hatched a plan to attack the opposite side of the planet away from the orbiting Star Fortress. This side of the plant was still heavily guarded by another Star Base as well as turrets and large number of ships from Ji Myle’s fleet. The attack began an hour later. The Star Fortress entered fast orbit to assist in the defense of the Klingons as Myle’s fleet closed in on the Klingon attackers. The Klingons began to get outgunned and were forced to pull out. The Klingons successfully knocked out a Star Base and destroyed two of the Battlecruisers in the attack but it costs them 8 D7 Cruisers and 6 Destroyers. Tarnum decided to deploy his powerful Bombers and Fighters to chip away at the outer fleet and lure Myle’s fleet into attack. The Tzenkethi were not patience enough to endure the attacks as Tarnum expected and got out of formation chasing the fighters. The Tzenkethi interceptors, mostly based in the Star Fotress, did not have the numbers to match the Klingon fighters. To make matters worse for Ji Myle, his interceptors had been spread thin with 40 lost during the Tarnums initial assault on the home plant and another 50 knocked out before flight when the other Star Base was destroyed. The Tzenkethi fleet began to be cut down and destroyed by Klingon Fire. Tarnum decided to ignore the Battlecruisers and hit the Star Fortress with his entire fleet since the lines had weakened. Very few Tzenkethi ships were situated to stop the onset on the Star Fortress or to even damage the Klingon fleet. With around 30 Cruisers and over 200 Bombers pounding it, the Star Fortress gave quickly. The defenses of the planet failed and with the fleet too spread out to cover the planetary defense turrets, the Klingons began to destroy the Tzenkethi Battlecruisers one at a time. The Tzenkethi fleet broke ranks and scattered causing chaotic fighting, especially with the light ships. Tarnum moved his cruisers to take out one battlecruiser after another until all six were destroyed and then he focused on the weaker light cruisers. The Klingons took casualty but with no interceptor or planetary defenses to cover them, the Tzenkethi ships were being mopped up by the Klingon fighters and bombers as well as the Klingon fleet which stayed in formation and directed joint fire on each Tzenkethi ship. The Tzenkethi escaped with only a token of its fleet and Ji Myle became another famous general to die fighting to the death against Tarnum. 

Outcome: With the defeat, the Tzenkethi were broken as a power. Tarnum boasted that the war was over and redeployed over a half of the fleet to the Federation border for the war with the Federation. General Chang took over a volatile situation. The Tzenkethi despite beaten, never surrendered and the fighting continued. The Tzenkethi retreated to distant systems and organized resistance movements that at first were nothing more than a nuisance but would later grow stronger, especially late in the war as Allied Fleets got closer to Tzenkethi space. 

The Tarnum War (also known as the Second Federation war to the Klingon Empire, Second Klingon war to the Cardassian Union and Elerians).

Dates: October 15, 2304 - (Note some historians argue April 29, 2304 when the Tzenkethi Empire was attacked as the opening date of the conflict)

Tarnum Wars list of players

Allies:  
United Federation of Planets  
Bolian Star Systems (joined Federation in the middle of war)  
Romulan Rebels and Restored Romulan Star Empire  
Mrrshan Rebels and Restored Mrrshan Empire  
Bulrathi Rebels and Restored Bulrathi Empire  
Meklar (co-belligerent against Klingon-Romulan Empire)  
Tzenkethi Empire  
Gnolam Confederacy  
Cardassian Union  
Elerian Empire  
Trilarian Systems (joined the Federation during the war)  
Psilon Alliance  
Orion Empire  
First Federation  
Ferengi Alliance  
Silicoids  
Alkarian Empire (allied with Federation against Sakkra)  
Fifth House of Betazed  
Trill (joined Federation early in the war)  
Gorn Rebels  
Breen Confederacy

Tarnum’s Allies:  
Klingon Empire  
Bulrathi Empire (occupied by Klingons and made province of Klingon Empire)  
Gorn Hegemony (occupied by Klingons and made province of Klingon Empire)  
Klingon-Romulan Empire (puppet state)  
Darlok Systems  
Sakkari Empire (late join)  
Bajoran Republic (rebelled and overthrew Cardassian Union occupation and allied with Tarnum)  
Meklar (Belligerent against both parties)  
Tholian Assembly (never entered the war but were hostile belligerents with Breen when they joined in 2310. Klingon’s sought Alliance with Tholians but failed to get Tholians to enter the war. Breen and Tholians would engage each other in fighting during conflict and a full-scale war erupted between the powers in 2319).

The Beginning of War

The Federation declared war on the Klingon Empire on October 15, 2304, hoping to aid the Tzenkethi Empire before it collapsed. The Federation failed in this endeavor. The attacks on the Klingon space proved to be minor skirmishes and news of the Battle of Tzenketh soon reached the Federation who realized that the Tzenkethi Empire was no longer a power and would not be able to provide a battle front with the Klingons. Any hope by the Federation of creating a front with the Tzenkethi rebels was non-existent. On October 31, 2304, the Federation ordered its primary fleet to Rigel and hoped to hold the system as a defensive front similar to their strategy against the Klingons in the Klingon-Romulan war. Defenses along the Romulan border rested with Benzar and the Federation allied planet of Bolarius which declared war on the Klingons with the Federation. The Federation failed to deploy forces along the Orion border hoping that the Klingons would either respect Orion neutrality or that the Orions could hold the line. Trilar announced entry into the war on October 20, 2304 to assist the Federation. Trill had been accepted into the Federation on October 16, 2304 and would provide further manpower.  
Tarnum’s offensive against the Federation was delayed due to the Tzenkethi conflict and the casualties that were taken at the Battle of Tzenketh. Despite being a decisive victory, the Battle of Tzenketh had been a strategic slowdown for the Klingon fleet which didn’t expect to be at war with the Federation this early. Tarnum had devised a plan to invade the Federation and still wanted to implement it despite being delayed a few months. The Klingons were ordered to take little action during the initial month of the war. Even the Bird of Preys did not cross the border and perform raids. The Klingons gathered four major battle fleets with four objectives.

KIF Fleet Organization:

KIF Fleet I: Located South on the Klingon map. Its directive would be to cut off Rigel to the South and link up with KIF Fleet II in surrounding the Federation forces at Rigel. It would support the stranglehold of Rigel and take and secure the surrounding systems while KIF Fleet II moved on to take Andoria. KIF Fleet II was under command of General Larr, the Gorn.

KIF Fleet II: Located due North of KIF Fleet I. The objective of this fleet was to invade the systems around Rigel on the North-side and then push on to Andoria once it met up with Fleet I. It would be the largest and strongest of the Klingon fleets. It would often fall under the personal command of Tarnum himself but was commanded, in name, by General Rarl Worf, a talented rising General from the House of Mog that Tarnum had faith in.

KIF Fleet III: This fleets objective would be to invade the Orion Systems and seize Orion in a quick campaign. From there it would proceed into Federation space on a direct course for Vulcan seizing all Federation system in a wide path on the way. The commander for this force would be General Hag Madon, another talented general that rose from a common background due to skill. He would be from the relative unknown House of Madon that would become a great house through his role in the KIF under Tarnum.

KIF Fleet IV: This fleet consisted of the Klingon-Romulan fleet with another decent sized Klingon attachment to the force. This force objective was to seize Bolarias and Benzar. To Tarnum, it was mostly a diversionary force to keep the Federation occupied along the Romulan border while the forces near Rigel moved onto Andoria and eventually Earth. The command of this force fell to Geron Martoc. 

In the early stage, all four fleets would basically meet their initial objectives, however, the plan was lvery ambitious and the attacks would be slowed by Federation heroism and other setbacks as the war continued. 

Tarnum set the attack date for March 7, 2305. By this time, several of the cruisers that participated in the Battle of Tzenketh would be back in action. 

Allied Strategy:

The Federation and her allies basically had four major fleets at the start of the war just as the Klingons organized into four fleets. 1st Fleet was based in the Rigel System and was the largest force. It was the frontline force against Klingon aggression and had already engaged in minor skirmishes and actions along the Klingon border up until March, when the fleet was put into defensive by Tarnum. This was the fleet Tarnum hoped to encircle and trap in the Rigel System.  
The 2nd Fleet was based in Benzar but was re-deploying most of its forces to Bolarias which was easier to defend and closer to the Romulan border. It was a lighter fleet than the 1st Fleet and had very few Excelsior-class starships available.  
The 3rd Fleet was based in the P’Jem system near Vulcan. It was a relief fleet for both the 1st Fleet and potentially the Orion Empire if the Orions came under attack. It also included the recently formed Vulcan Defense Forces which consisted of starships with all Vulcan crews.  
Finally, the 4th Fleet was made up of starships being assembled or gathering near Earth to form another fleet. It also included Trilarian ships. It may also be called a reserve fleet as it could be split and sent throughout the battle lines.  
The Federation were shocked at the non-movement of the Klingons early in the conflict but expected that an attack would come soon. They hoped to hold the line first and cause attrition to the Klingons. Several Star Fleet Admirals and Captains proposed striking first but this was shot down by Star Fleet Command. Admiral Ohsaki was given general command and he proposed a strategy with the support of additional commanders including Admiral James Kirk, a hero of the first war, of holding back strong reserve units that could react to the Klingon attacks once Star Fleet discovered Tarnum’s strategy. The Federation was well aware that Tarnum’s early campaigns had revealed a major departure from the strategy utilized in their first war with the Klingons. Ohsaki recognize that Tarnum’s blitzkrieg had changed the way wars were fought and that the quickness and mobility of the attacks could lead to fleets being split apart and cut off. He wanted to keep a strong reserve force to counter-attack the Klingon invasions.  
During the interwar period, the Federation had upgraded the armament and shield strength of their Constitution, Soyuz, Miranda, Kelvin, and Excelsior class starships to put their fleet on a more war footing compared to their normal exploration focus. 

The Offensive begins

In joint unison, on March 7, 2304, all four Klingon fleets left Klingon space and invaded Federation/Orion space. KIF IV’s offensive started out with stiff resistance and slowed after taking several star systems along the front. The battle along the Romulan-Federation war would start out resembling more of the first war as the Klingon and Federation fleets got bogged down into a war of attrition.  
In other arenas, KIF I received little resistance and pushed deep into Federation space and began to cut off Rigel as commanded. Berringaria and Organia were both seized by KIF I after the moons fell. KIF II was slowed early on in a Battle against part of the First Fleet at Seti Alpha. Tarnum would win the battle in spectacular fashion.

Battle of Seta Alpha II  
Data: April 6, 2304  
Outcome: Decisive Klingon Victory

KIF II Forces: 6 Kting Class Battlecruisers, 26 D7 Class, 28 Bird of Preys, 33 Destroyers, 300 Fighters, 48 Bombers  
Command: General Rarl Worf  
Casualties: 1 Ktinga Battlecruiser lost, 8 D7 Cruisers lost, 5 Bird of Preys lost, 3 Destroyers lost, 208 Fighters lost, 13 Bombers lost, several ships damaged but could not be repaired until reaching Aldebaran, 2 D7 Cruisers and 3 Destroyers left behind due to damages to warp drive to repair at Seta Alpha. 

UFP First Fleet Forces: 1 Federation Class, 4 Excelsior Class, 8 Constitution Class, 3 Constellation Class, 9 Miranda Class, 7 Soyuz Class, 2 Nova Class, 3 Mayflower Class, 2 Ptolemy Class, 100 Light Craft  
Command: Admiral Sheffield  
Casualties: USS Federation (Federation Class) destroyed with Admiral Sheffield, USS Christopher Pike destroyed (Excelsior), USS Rigel (Excelsior) heavily damaged, 2 Constitution Class lost (USS Courageous and USS Bristol), 1 Constellation Class lost, 2 Miranda Class lost, 3 Soyuz Class lost, 1 Mayflower Class lost, both Ptolemy Class lost, 30 Light Craft destroyed. Several ships damaged required repairs at Rigel.

Description: The fight erupted for the second planet of the Seta Alpha system made famous by the banishment of Khan at Seta Alpha V. The main Klingon fleet from KIF II was drawn into an engagement by a large body of ships from the First Fleet under command of Admiral Sheffield. Tarnum was busy directed the maneuvers of all the Klingon forces and gave leeway to General Worf in the battle although there was more supervision provided once Tarnum realized the size of the Federation force, however his advice came too late and was ignored in the heat of battle.  
KIF II was on route for its objective to meet KIF I and surrounded the First Fleet. The objective system would ultimately be Aldebaran System. KIF II had occupied about 7 border systems including Bernard’s Star and Florence by April and was pushing deeper. The ultimate objective called for the capture of around 20 Federation systems (all mostly partially settled and sparsely populated) before meeting up with KIF I at Aldebaran. KIF II was caught off guard by the large Federation force in such an insignificant system. It was clearly an attempt to ambush the fleet and Worf ordered his ships into line. He decided to not flee because it would slow or even cancel KIF II’s offensive and would ruin the overall battle strategy. Any attempt to retreat might be disasterous to the other Klingon fleets. Worf could not bring all his ships to bare as some, most notably several destroyers and Bird of Preys, were scattered across other systems or raiding Federation territories. Admiral Sheffield also did not bring the full force of the First Fleet with him. However, both fleets engaged at the battle were composed of significant portions of units of both Fleets and the battle was clearly one that would be decisive for the region.  
Admiral Sheffield made the USS Federation (Federation-Class) his flagship and had brought four Excelsior Class startships with him (USS Bismarck, USS Ticonderoga, USS Rigel, and USS Jonathan Archer). All of the Constitution starships in the fleet had also been updated since the Klingon-Romulan War. Sheffield attacked first, noticing that Worf was a cautious commander. He hit the left part of Worf’s lines hoping to break the Klingon formation. Worf decided to perform a typically Tarnum strategy by sending cloaked Bird of Preys to attack the flank of Sheffield’s fleet. The Excelsiors were significantly superior and the Constitution-Class Starships were an equal match to the Klingon D7 Cruisers. The Miranda’s where also a major upgrade from the Soyuz class and Nova Class and would perform admirably in the fight. The Klingons began to take significant damage and their lines began to break under the surprise assault. Worf released his fighters and bombers which proved to be a distraction to slow the assault although Federation ships were more effective against the lighter craft than any other fleet the Klingons had gone up against to that point. It was in the end the surprise assault of the Bird of Preys that caught the Federation fleet by surprise. They hit the command ship first and eventually destroyed it causing Sheffield to die. Captain Ryman, a Tellerite, took over the fleet and began to command a withdrawal under heavy fire to Rigel. 

Outcome: Both sides took casualties but Worf was able to conquer Ceta Alpha II and continued on towards his objectives. The defeat may have cost the Klingons several weeks of time to repair ships before the Andoriaia Campaign which would be valuable to the Federation later. Worf ended up sacrificing a significant number of his light craft in the battle to slow the assault which also hurt later Klingon offensives.

The Battle of Ceta Alpha II despite being a victory would be a small Federation Victory in the long run. The battle did not slow the initial advance but did cause some casualties that the Klingons would not be able to be made up for the quick objectives of this campaign. Tarnum and the Klingons considered the battle to be a great victory and ordered his fleet on. A wargroup of Bird of Preys managed to ambush a small fleet of 3 Constitution Class and 1 Excelsior heading to Rigel before they could provide support and routed them sending them back to Earth for repair as well as destroying one of the Constitution Class starships. The Rigel Campaign was going according to plan and both fleets soon converged at Aldebaran cutting the supply lines to Rigel. Rigel and a couple of surrounding systems still held by the First Fleet were now cut off from the rest of the Federation. The lighting strategy had shocked some of the Federation strategists who had thought the Klingons would hit Rigel itself. Admiral Sheffield had been one of the voices calling for offensive action and had feared that the First Fleet would have been cut off just as the Romulans and Cardassians had their forward fleets cut-off against the Klingons. Admiral Ohsaki stepped down in favor of Admiral Jason Bekar who took command of Star-Fleet’s grand strategy. The famous Admiral Kirk was given command of the Fourth Fleet and the responsibility for holding off the advance on Earth. Kirk asked for Ohsaki to be given co-command as Kirk was more of a straight up ship to ship commander than a Fleet combat strategist. 

The Orion Campaign

Due to delays, the KIF III did not enter Orion Space until March 10. Early engagements began immediately as the Orions were determined to defend their space. However, once the Klingons brought reinforcements the Orions were forced to pull back. The engage-withdraw strategy would be used by the Orions throughout the campaign. General Hag Madon, wisely started to use his Bird of Preys in similar manner and they began to engage and destroy the smaller Orion forces as the Bird of Preys were more than a match against the Orions in ship to ship combat. KIF III had occupied a third of Orion space by the End of April and invaded Orion itself on May 5, 2304. The Orions put up heavy resistance but once the Klingons appeared to be winning they withdrew. The Orions decided on a new strategy of falling back to Federation space and meeting up with their allies to combat the Klingons to retake their space. The Orion fleet began to pull out not with just military craft but also civilian craft, freighters, and other vessels taking refugees to the Federation. Admiral Loka of the Third Fleet wanted the Orions to continue to delay the Klingons long enough so that the Federation could form defensive lines with the Orion ships to stop the Klingon advance. However, despite this, the Orions failed to slow the Klingon advance and the Bird of Preys continued to take their toll. Another issue was the weak resistance by Orions against the Klingon ground forces. Orions were not great infantry fighters and many Orions were indifferent to Klingon occupation. This ruined the defensive strategy of the Allies even more.  
The Orions finally began a full pull-out and surrendered their space by the mid-June. They met up with the Federation fleet near Fesarius, the System of the First Federation. The Federation hoped that Fesarius would provide a strong defensive base to stop the Klingons entering Federation space and keep Orion space opened for raids and liberation campaigns. The joint Fleet soon faced KIF III in full battle at Fesarius. 

The Fesarius Campaign  
Date: July 7, 2304 – August 10, 2304  
Outcome: Klingon Victory

KIF III Forces: 4 Ktinga Class Battlecruisers, 16 D7 Cruisers, 23 Bird of Preys, 20 Destroyers, 100 Fighters, 20 Bombers, 9 updated D5s  
Commanders: Hag Madon with significant assistance by comm. from Tarnum  
Casualties: 1 Ktinga Battlecruiser, 6 D7 Cruisers, 11 Bird of Preys, 6 Destroyers, 3 D5s, and 35 Light craft lost. Over 130,000 Klingons died in ground campaign for Fesarius and surrounding systems.

Allied Forces: 2 Excelsior Class Cruisers, 6 Constitution Class, 1 Constellation Class, 4 Orion Cruisers, 3 Miranda Class, 8 Soyuz Class, 3 Ptolemy Class, 2 Mayflower Class, 23 Orion Destroyers, 2 First Federation Battleships (Fesarius Class), 6 Vulcan Destroyers, 86 Light Craft, First Federation defense systems  
Commanders: Admiral Loka (a Vulcan), Regent Solva (the Orion fleet commander), Bracca (First Federation Commander). 

Casualties: 1 Excelsior lost (USS Kobe), 2 Constitution Class Star Ships lost (USS Gemini and USS Leander), 2 Orion Cruisers lost, 1 Miranda lost (USS Nile), 10 Orion Destroyers lost, 2 Soyuz Class ships lost, 1 Ptolemy lost, 60 Light Craft lost or captured. Both First Federation Battleships destroyed. Bracca forced into exile on Earth. 

Situation: The Orions had taken damage but their fleet combined with the available ships of the Third Fleet which gave a tactical advantage to the Allies. The First Federation also had two powerful Battleships available as well as strong planetary defenses including turrets and starbases.  
Tarnum had initially hoped to destroy the Orion fleet in Orion space before the Federation could react. The Orion tactics had been surprising but Hag Madon had adjusted well. The Orions had wisely linked their main fleet up with the Federation and the two now joined with their ally the First Federation to provide a large force that could not be bypassed for the Vulcan campaign. Hag Madon worried about the numbers but Tarnum pointed out that numbers had never been a concern to the Klingons.  
Tarnum and Hag Madon decided to draw the Federation fleet out by attacking several strategic areas around the Fesarius system. The defenses were too powerful for the Klingon fleet to attack head on and survive. The First Federation highly valued their territory and had previously lost a Battleship engaging the Klingon fleet before the battle. Over the course of the week the Klingons destroyed numerous valuable targets and threaten to surround the allies. Admiral Loka and Regent Solva agreed it was time to attack. The leader of the First Federation Bracca had wanted to attack from the start seeing it as inevitable. The first battle did not take place in the actual Fesarius system but a neighboring system of the First Federation called Reticca. The Klingons lured the Federation/Orion fleet into an ambush. In a change of normal battle routine, the Klingons focused attacks on the smaller ships and the Orion ships destroying numerous of them at the cost of 3 D7 Cruisers and some of their light ships. The Allied fleet withdraw after a day of battle which would be labeled the Battle of Reticca (July 13, 2304). The Klingons then moved again to try to cut off the Allied fleet and were engaged in a small battle resulting in an Allied victory near the system of Uhja. A First Federation captain provided valuable information regarding a star dust cloud that was used to hide part of the Orion and Federation fleet which ambushed and destroyed several Klingon Bird of Preys and Destroyers. Tarnum began to lose patience with the small fighting and decided on a new strategy. He made a third move to cut off the Fesarius this time with only a piecemeal fleet of Bird of Preys and destroyers, once the Allied fleet pulled out of the Fesarius system, the Klingons attacked rapidly with their full fleet, broke the system defenses, and landed troops on Fesarius. The First Federation was shocked by the sudden attack and forced to surrender. 

Outcome: With Fesarius capitulated, the Allied fleet had to retreat. They fell back to the Denobula System to regroup. The Klingons took casualties but were able to capture one of the most important strategic points on the route for Vulcan. The Federation started to fortify the worlds between and built up fleets in Denobula, P’Jem, and the strategic system of Berengaria. The Klingon fleet was slowed due to high casualties during the assault on the Fesarius and had to receive reinforcements to proceed on the campaign buying the Federation time. Another consolation for the Federation was that although Admiral Loka took significant losses, his fleet remained alive and active to continue the fight.

The Situation by Fall of 2304

The Federation had been driven back on all fronts and suffered major defeats: Rigel being cut off from the rest of the Federation, the Orions capitulating, and Fesarius being conquered. Benzar and Bolarius were also under attack and Klingon Imperial Forces were pushing towards Earth. Despite this, the war was beginning to tilt slightly towards the Federation. The Federation had kept its fleets intact. They had also begun to form fleets near Andoriaia and Berrengaria. The Third and Fourth Fleet were now the main fleets standing between the Klingons and conquest of the Federation.  
The Klingons meanwhile had started to overextend their lines and had lost too many ships in their previous attacks and conquests. Despite this, the Klingons were confident that they could at the least seize Andoria and perhaps threaten Earth and Vulcan. The KIF II began to prepare for the long Andorian offensive but this was delayed for another opportunity. Tarnum had been surprised by KIF III’s quick progress as he had expected the force to be caught up for some time fighting heavy Federation and Orion resistance. Fesarius capture so soon had bolstered the campaign. Tarnum decided that joining the two fronts would create a long front along Vulcan and Andoriaia that would be indefensible for the Federation. The main system standing between the two forces was Berrengaria where the Third Fleet rested. The Klingons decided the system should be captured and launched the attack on October 20, 2304 started the year long Berrengaria campaign.

Berrengaria Campaign:  
Dates: October 20, 2304 – March 8, 2306  
Result: Federation Victory

Forces:  
KIF II: Over 50 ships during the course of the campaign, although primarily at the start of the campaign with most the force participating in the Andoriaia Campaign in early 2305  
Commanded by Rarl Worf  
Casualties: KIF II lost around 20 ships in early campaign and around 8 ships in later campaigns. About 20,000 ground troops died in November 2304.

KIF III as well as reinforcements from Klingon-Romulan Empire: Primarily participating Klingon force, included at its height over 30 D7 Cruisers and 8 Ktinga Cruisers in 2305. Over 8 million Klingon ground troops, 2 million Bulrathi ground troops, 100,000 Romulans, and 200,000 Gorn participated in ground campaigns.  
Commanded by Hag Madon  
Casualties: Over 40 ships lost and 4 million ground combatents dead or captured. 

Third Fleet, Federation Reinforcements, and Berrengaria defense:  
Around 60 Federation ships at different times of the campaign. Over 5 million Federation ground troops and 3 Million Milita Fighters. Various System defenses including a Star Base, Defense Turrets, and Planetary Missile Bases.  
Commanded by Admiral Loka and Captain Sulu (later)  
Casualties: Over 40 ships lost and nearly 3 million deaths, many of them citizens of Berrengaria.

Description: The Berrengaria campaign would be fought concurrent with the Andorian Campaign but started earlier. Tarnum believed the system could be captured quickly and that Third fleet was battered from the previous campaigns in Fesarius. The Klingons failed to grasp the real status of the Third Fleet as it had regrouped and repaired its forces at Berrengaria, received reinforcements (including several ships from Second Fleet and Vulcan Defense ships). The USS Excelsior under the command of Captain Sulu had also been sent to reinforce the fleet which was a morale boast as the Excelsior had been a powerful flagship for the Federation in the first war and interwar period. Most importantly, Star Fleet command had expected an attempt by the Klingons to join their lines and Star Fleet had increased the defenses at Berrengaria with numerous Star Base, Defense turrents, shipyards, mines, and built outposts on surrounding planets to resist Klingon occupation. The system was heavily fortified and ready for an attack. Sensors picked up several of the Klingon ships early on October 20, 2304 and red alert was sounded throughout the system.  
Despite knowledge of the attack, the Klingons had thrown heavy numbers at the Federation defenders as a part of a way to overwhelm the defense. The Federation fleet stayed close to the system defenses as the Klingons began an attack on a smaller Ice planet on the edge of the system. The Federation had an outpost there that held out for six hours and killed numerous Klingon ground forces before surrendering. The Klingons now had a base to fall back to and hope to lay siege to the system. This siege lasted until November 5, 2304 when Tarnum got impatient and was afraid of a Federation counteroffensive against his lines. He needed the KIF II ships on the front and so decided to make an offensive to break the Federation defenders. He launched an attack against one of Berrengaria’s fortified moons that looked like a weak point in the Federation lines. The attack was foiled with the loss of three Bird of Preys before it started as the space around the moon’s orbit was heavily mined. These mines had proximaty controls that allowed them to fly at enemy ships within a 100,000 kms of their location. They could also distinguish friendly Federation ships.  
The Klingon pushed back and had to reform another plan quick because parts of the Federation Fourth Fleet had started to attack their supply lines. The plan called for a full attack on the heavily fortified second moon. The attack began on the morning of November 11, 2304. It turned into a major space battle. The Klingons hit the moon with 4 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 24 Cruisers, 39 Destroyers, and 28 Bird of Preys. The main Federation fleet was heavily overwhelmed and driven back. Despite this the Klingons had taken severe damage with 6 Cruisers destroyed and one of the Battlecruisers unable to obtain warp. During the fighting, Admiral Loka’s flagship was destroyed with him onboard; leaving Captain Sulu and the USS Excelsior in command of the Third Fleet. The battle had been chaotic with the lines broken. Federation turrets hit the Klingons from every direction but the Klingons succeeded and breaking through to the moon and landing large number of ground forces. The Klingons hoped to take the moon and build missile turrets to strike Berrengaria and force it to surrender. Captain Sulu surprised the Klingons when he ordered an attack on the previously captured outer ice-plant. The Federation fleet could not hold the position but they dropped off more ground troops starting a guerlla war that turned the moon into a combat zone which drew Klingon ground forces away from other targets. He had also succeeded in destroying the recently built Klingon shipyard and turrets around the ice planet. He had performed this maneuver with only Miranda class ships, Constitution class ships, and his Excelsior class ship as they were all faster than the other ships in the fleet. Berrengaria began arming all kinds of civilian ships and sending them into action making the Federation fleet even more irregular with Orion and Vulcan designed warships already among the force. Two simulatenous ground campaigns lasted for months with the Klingons unable to knock out the resistence. The Klingons would fail to fully secure the Ice Planet during the entire campaign although they had tactical control of the planet again by November 18, 2304.  
Despite Federation resistance, the Klingons got missile batteries up on the moon and began firing them at the home planet. Following Tarnum’s commands, Hag Madon and Rarl Worf ordered the forces to only hit military targets or spaceships and avoid being unhonorable by killing civilians. The Klingons would have devastated Berrengaria’s civilian population without these orders. Despite this fact, the Federation still feared for the civilian population and threw everything in the system that they had at a counteroffensive on November 23, 2304. It was labeled the Thanksgiving counteroffensive and it saw considerable losses of ships and infantry. The Federation succeeded in taking the space between the planet and moon by using fighters to hit Klingon cruisers in mass. The Klingons also came under fire from Berrengaria’s defenses in this small space and could not keep the moon from being surrounded. Both fleets began orbital bombardment of the opposing forces infantry from space.  
The standstill battle over the moon lasted until December 3, 2304 when Tarnum began to get even more impatient with the offensive as the Federation had started driving back KIF II. The Klingons evacuated the moon and pulled back to the Ice Planet on December 10, 2304. On December 12, 2304, the forces of KIF II were mostly pulled from the system to support the Andoria Campaign. The Klingons and Federation had relative parity at this time. Tarnum was severely disappointed by the campaign due to the fact the Klingons failed to take the system despite having superior numbers. The strategy changed into a long Klingon siege. The Klingons hoped to outlast the Federation. The Federation held a similar strategy on their end hoping to keep the Klingon forces diverted at Berrengaria instead of attacking other Federation systems.  
The Andorian Campaign began to turn against the Klingons by July 2305. By October, the Federation was pushing back a decimated KIF II force. By December they had retaken the Denobulan system and had their eyes set on reinforcing Berrengaria. Admiral Jon E. Williams arrived with reinforcements on January 8, 2306. The Klingon fleet used their small number of Bird of Preys to ambush the USS Organia and several smaller ships striking a considerable blow on the reinforcements. Despite this, Hag Madon knew that the campaign was turning against him, he asked Tarnum if he could pull back his line slightly to a more defensible location. Tarnum allowed the withdrawal and gave Hag Madon 2 months to allow KIF II to reform. In February, The Federation began several offensives on the Klingon held ice planet at the urging of Jon E. Williams. He wanted to break KIF III forces through attrition. The Federation began to suffer casualties but they also put dents into KIF III as well. The attrition cost the Federation several cruisers and began to damage the Klingon fleet beyond repair. Fearing being overrun by Federation forces, Hag Madon contacted Tarnum again and demanded a pull back on March 1. Tarnum granted it. Hag Madon’s fleet fought a delay action while the troops and personnel were evacuated. The Klingon fleet pulled out of the Berrengaria system by March 8.  
Outcome: Hag Madon’s pull out was wise because it allowed the Klingons to reform their lines. The Federation were on the verge of a breakthrough despite the casualties they were sustaining. Jon E. Williams wanted to push against the Klingon lines but this was denied by Starfleet who knew that they needed to rebuild their fleets before pushing further. The Berrengaria campaign, despite being a sideshow to the larger Andorian Campaign, was crucial in keeping necessary Klingon forces from assisting KIF II and allowed the Federation to fight on a smaller front. Berrengaria ended up being just as high in casualties as the Andorian Campaign as both sides had slowly trickled more ships and more men into the long campaign. 

The Rigel-Andoria run

During October of 2304, a bold run was made as several powerful Federation ships broke out of the Rigel pocket and made their way back to Federation lines near Earth. The ships that made the run where, the USS Indomitable (Excelsior Class), USS Sheridan (Miranda Class), USS Yorktown (Excelsior Class), USS Phoenix (Constitution Class), USS Denobulan (Constitution Class), and the USS Marco Polo (Miranda Class). These shipss flew through light years of Klingon occupied space suffering casualties along the way. They engage numerous Bird of Preys in open space 5 parsecs from Rigel in the early fight. Marco Polo was significantly damaged and destroyed in the engagement. Phoenix was forced to turn around and return to the First Fleet. The run continued with Bird of Preys following them. The ships did everything to maintain warp and fight off the attackers. The Denobulan suffered heavy damaged and came out of warp. However, the USS Denobulan was able to make it back to Federation lines having evading Klingon forces on July 2305. The majority of the fleet made it to Andoria and began repairs on November 2, 2304. The leader of the run was Captain Mark Riker who would be given a promotion to Rear Admiral for his boldness. These ships would play a part in the Andorian campaign.

The Campaign for Andoria

The first engagement of the Andorian campaign was a counter attack against the Federation fleet by the Klingons. The Klingons meet them in open space about 2 parsecs from the Coridon system in what became known as the First Battle of Coridon. The Klingons maneuvered their cruisers to focus on the Federation capitol ships while the Bird of Preys kept the rest of the fleet off balance. The USS Indomitable and USS Caroline (Both Excelsior class ships) were lost in the battle along with the USS Wasp (Constitution Class), USS Galileo (Constitution Class), USS Stargazer (Miranda Class), USS Murmansk (Constellation Class), and USS Gandhi (Soyuz Class). The Fourth Fleet was heavily damaged including the Enterprise which took damage trying to keep the fleet together and the USS Yorktown. The fleet fell back to Andoria to regroup and reinforce. The Klingons proceeded to seize Coridon after a quick campaign that cost them more ships (2 D7 Cruisers) than the previous battle. Tarnum had once again out maneuvered the Federation, won a major battle with minimal losses, and was poised to launch his assault for Andoria.

First Battle of Andoria  
Date: January 6, 2305  
Result: Slight Federation Victory

Forces:

Federation Fourth Fleet: 

5 Heavy Cruisers: USS Yamato and USS Charter (Federation Class); USS Yorktown, USS Tirpitz, USS Victory (Excelsior Class); 

13 Cruisers: USS Enterprise, USS Fiji, USS Bretagne, USS Lexington, USS Intrepid, USS Saturn, USS Jonathan Archer (Constitution Class); USS Constellation, USS Ceres (Constellation Class); USS Cochise, USS Sirak, USS Kashmir (Saladin Class);

8 Light Cruisers: USS Armstrong (Armstrong Class); USS Doestovesky, USS Reliant, USS Nautilus, USS Sheridan, USS Columbus, USS Meteorite, USS Challenger (Miranda Class); 

20 Destroyers and other Ships: USS Andoria, USS Galvin, USS Magna Carta, USS Baylta, USS Trill, USS Kerrigan, USS Susan B. Anthony (Soyuz Class); USS Pharoah, USS Seleucus, USS Antiochus, USS Archimedes (Ptolemy Class); USS Apollo, USS Sputnik, USS Albert Einstein, USS Hermes (Mayflower Class); USS Tellar, USS Centauri, USS Abraham (Kelvin Class), USS Oberth, USS Cochrane (Oberth Class) 

30 Federation Light Craft, 20 Trilarian Attack Frigates, 2 Trill Frigates, 1 Vulcan destroyer, 120 Sabre class fighters.

Commanders: Admiral Ohsaki, Rear Admiral James T. Kirk, Rear Admiral Jon E. Williams

Casualties: USS Federation, USS Victory, USS Fiji, USS Constellation, USS Sirak, USS Columbus, USS Galvin, USS Pharoah, USS Apollo, and USS Abraham all lost. 35 Sabre Class fighters destroyed, 2 Trilarian Attack Frigates destroyed. Several ships damaged required repair. Around 1800 Casualties.

Klingon Imperial Force II: 6 Ktinga Class Battlecruisers, 18 D7 Class Cruisers, 28 Destroyers, 20 Bird of Preys, 14 D6 Frigates, 3 Scout Ships, 150 Fighters, 20 Bombers

Commanders: General Rarl Worf, General Kala Harot, Very limited strategic input from Tarnum

Casualties: 2 Ktinga Battlecruisers destroyed, 5 D7 Class Cruisers destroyed, 8 Destroyers lost, 3 Bird of Preys lost, 4 D6 Frigates lost, 1 Scout Ship lost, 32 Fighters and 1 Bomber lost. Around 2,000 casualties

Description: The Federation deployed nearly the entire Earth Defense Force and Fourth Fleet to aid Andoria. Unfortunately, Andoria did not have enough the time to fortify properly so Rear Admiral Kirk and Admiral Ohsaki decide to attack the Klingon Fleet before it directly entered the Andorian system in hopes of catching them off-guard. The Federation fleet was made up of numerous ship classes and designs as the Federation had rushed any ship in the general area to the defense of one of their founding worlds.  
KIF II had taken losses before the battle and did not expect to be attacked by a large Federation strike force. The Klingons had introduced a new Frigate Class (the D6) which was an updated D5 model with modern weaponry and armor although the ship speed was slow for a frigate class. The speed was made up for by firepower; the D6 had as much firepower as a Destroyer.  
The Excelsior and Federation Classes had devastating fire power and only the Ktinga could stand against these ship classes. The Miranda, Armstrong, and Constitution Classes, despite being lightly armored, carried significant firepower and could match the D7 Class. The Klingons had numbers but the Federation had a diversified fleet with heavy fire power that could not be easily defeated. Kirk and the Enterprise’s presence increased the morale of the fleet despite the age of the Ship and Kirk.  
The Federation fleet could not mask its presence from Klingon sensors in the attack but the Miranda Class ships and the Armstrong could out race the enemy and they began the attack first destroying 3 Klingon Destroyers with no losses. The Constitution Classes and Excelsior classes arrived quick as well and began to hit the Klingons with their firepower. The Klingons, initially, could only bring a part of their fleet to bare as the other ships were still at warp with some overshooting the fleet and others lagging far behind. The Klingons were scattered and Federation ships began to come out of warp and hit them as they arrived. 2 Ktinga Battlecruisers were destroyed and Rarl Worf’s flagship took heavy damaged. However, the Klingons rallied and began to hit at the heavier Federation ships already engaged in battle. The USS Charter suffered heavy damage and was invaded by a Klingon boarding party. The Enterprise sent an away team that stopped the assault but the Charter was considered a loss and forced to self-destruct to avoid capture and taking a D7 Cruiser with it. The USS Victory was hit hard by Klingon torpedos and exploded. Several Federation cruisers also were destroyed. However, it was clear the Klingons were taking more casualties. Worf ordered a general retreat.  
Admiral Kirk ordered pursuit but a huge chunk of the Federation fleet did not follow. His force managed to knock out a D7 Cruiser and several other lighter Klingon ships before falling back to Andoria. The Federation and Klingons had both taken casualties from the disorganized battle but Andoria was saved and the fleets now had relative parity. It was a great start to the campaign by the Federation and another tough pill for the Klingons to swallow after the failure to take Berrengaria in an initially assault. One notable element of the battle was the first command of Rear Admiral Jon E. Williams who was on the U.S.S. Armstrong and lead the Light Cruisers in the battle. 

Outcome: The Battle stalled the offensive and started the battle of maneuvers that would make up the remainder of this campaign. The Klingons no longer had numbers and would now have to rely on tactics to win the battle. General Rarl Worf was blamed for both failures at Andoria and Berrengaria and was demoted in favor of General Kala Harot.  
The battle showed the combat value of the Excelsior and Miranda classes which were in full production. The Armstrong Class also became a focus of production. The Federation Class was de-emphasized due to the slow speed of the ship. It had been a factor in the first war but by now the ship was outdated. The Constitution class was also beginning to show age as the Miranda class was lighter, quicker, and could match the firepower of the Constitution class. Kirk demanded that the Federation Fleet push forward and assault Coridan. This attack proceeded a week after the battle but Kirk was only able to bring a portion of the Fourth Fleet. The Klingons, despite having numbers, were still damaged from the previous fight and surprised by Kirk’s assault and retreated from Coridan without a major engagement. The Federation reclaimed the system by January 14, 2305. 

The Klingons needed a new plan. Tarnum appointed Kala Harot as commander of KIF II and decided to send the force against the Denobulan system hoping to draw the Federation fleet out for another fight and ambushed them. The Battle of Denobulan was a success for the Klingons as they seized the system, destroy a couple of Federation capitol ships (USS Jonathan Archer and USS Saturn), and putting the U.S.S. Tirpitz out of action with significant damage that would take several months to repair. Kirk had not participated in this battle for health reasons and the Enterprise was based at Andoria for defense. Admiral Ohsaki was blamed for the failure and replaced by Admiral Bisa Wol (an Andorian) despite protests from Kirk.  
The Klingons ground troops suffered over 500,000 casualties fighting troops on Denobula but the system proved to be easier to control then expected and over 2 million federation troops surrendered not long after the assault. The planet of 4 Billion was now under Klingon control in a disasterous defeat for the Federation. KIF II, however, saw it as a side show in attempt to seize Andoria. The Klingons pulled out of the Denobulan System by March 5, 2305 with the exception of a single fortified planet on the exterior of the system. KIF II began by to form up for on an assault on Alpha Centauri. Klingon Bird of Preys also began raiding systems in the area hoping to lower the morale of the Federation citizenry. Bird of Preys even entered the Sol System and hit at stations on the outer gas giants but failed to get to the Utopia Shipyards near Earth.  
The Alpha Centauri assault fully began on April 4, 2305. The Klingons did not have enough ships to truly seize the system so they began to assault moons of the outer gas giants. The Federation decided to let the Klingons have the moons with no resistance. Rear Admiral Kirk was sent with a significant fleet. The Federation felt that if Alpha Centauri fell, then Earth would be open for attack. Tarnum gambled on this and re-deployed the majority of KIF II to assault Andoria for a second time. 

Second Battle of Andoria:  
Date: May 6, 2305 – August 8, 2305  
Outcome: Federation Victory

Federation Force: 

2 Heavy Cruisers: USS Yamato (Federation Class), USS Organia (Excelsior Class)

3 Cruisers: USS Bretagne, USS Wisconsin (Constitution Class), USS Ceres (Constellation Class), USS Cochise, USS Kashmir (Saladin Class)

Light Cruisers: USS Botic, USS Challenger, USS Doestovesky (Miranda Class),

Destroyers and Other Classes: USS Andoria, USS Baylta, USS Trill, USS Susan B. Anthony (Soyuz Class); USS Antiochus, USS Archimedes (Ptolemy Class); USS Apollo, USS Sputnik, (Mayflower Class); USS Tellar (Kelvin Class), USS Oberth, (Oberth Class);  
10 Trilarian Frigates, 38 Andorian Freighters armed with weaponry, 60 Sabre Class Fighters, 8 other Light Federation ships converted to fight.  
Commander: Admiral Bisa Wol

Reinforcements: USS Armstrong (Armstrong Class), USS Reliant, USS Sheridan, USS Nautilus (Miranda Class), USS Leander (Constitution Class), USS Hermes and USS Melbourne Star (Mayflower Class)  
Commander: Rear Admiral Jon E. Williams and Captain Manish Patel (Sheridan)

Casualties: USS Yamato, USS Bretagne, USS Wisconsin, USS Kashmir, USS Nautilus, USS Doestovesky, USS Andoria, USS Baylta, USS Sputnik, USS Archimedes, 8 Trilarian Frigates and 20 other lighter ships lost in the fight. Over 5 million Andorian and Federation soldiers killed. Over 2 million Andorian citizens lost. Admiral Bisa Wol killed. USS Ceres and USS Cochise damaged heavily in early fighting and forced to retreat to Earth for repairs which took months. 

KIF II: 2 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 8 D7 Cruisers, 13 Destroyers, 10 Bird of Preys, 3 million Klingon Troops, 100,000 Gorn Troops, Transports, 10 D6 Frigates, 2 Scout Ships, 100 Fighters, 10 Bombers

Klingon reinforcements: 1 D7 Cruiser, 4 Destroyers, 2 Bird of Preys, another 500,000 Klingon Troops  
Commander: Kala Harot

Casualties: 1 Ktinga Battlecruisers lost another heavily damaged, 6 D7 Cruisers lost, 7 Destroyers lost, 6 Bird of Preys lost, 4 D6 Frigates lost, 60 Fighters and 2 Bombers lost. Over 2.5 million Klingon and Gorn troops killed, another 1.5 million taken prisoner.

Description: 

The Klingons caught the Federation naked at Andoria as the Federation fleet had been successfully diverted away to Alpha Centauri. The early advantage allowed the Klingons to push the remaining Federation fleet back and inflicted significant damaged in the early skirmish. Admiral Bisa Wol began to assault the main force with his flagship and fought a desperate battle. He died fighting valiantly for his homeworld. Andoria would honor him as a hero. The Federation fleet having taken significant casualties fell back and regroup at the local starbase. The Klingon fleet took more casualties dealing with the planetary defense systems but landed over 3 million troops on Andoria’s moon. Andorian Imperial Guardsmen ran a Klingon blockade to relieve the moon and heavy fighting began. Over 1 billion Andorians lived on the moon and began to rally. The Klingon fleet bombed some significant sites on Andoria hoping the planet would surrender but it did not.  
A week passed with heavy fighting before a reinforcement fleet under command of Jon E. Williams and Manish Patel arrived. Jon E. Williams quickly gathered the renemants of the Federation fleet still in the Andoria system. He by-passed the Klingon fleet and began to occupy numerous planets in the system without any military presence. However, the Klingon fleet moved to engage his fleet. The ensuing battle saw a Federation defeat but not without taking out one of the Ktinga Battle Cruisers and 3 D7 Cruisers while Jon E. Williams kept his capitol ships still intact including the Organia, Armstrong, and Leander (which was the only Constitution ship left in system after all previous ones had been destroyed in earlier fighting). Captain Patel meanwhile took the Sheridan, Hermes, and Andoria on a raid that destroyed 3 of the Bird of Preys while they were undergoing repairs.  
On July 6, 2305 more Klingon reinforcements arrived to address the new Federation threat. 500,000 more ground troops were added to the moon to fight the Andorian Imperial Guard. The moon needed aid so Captain Patel again took the Sheridan, Hermes, Andoria, Nautilus, and several transports and sent another 200,000 Andorian troops through the Klingon fleet to relieve the moon.  
Amdiral Jon E. Williams wanted to pull the Klingon fleet into an ambush and decided to lay a trap near the moon knowing the Klingons would have to act to save their forces. He drew the last Ktinga Battle Cruiser out and it took heavy damage having to withdraw from the Andorian system. In addition, one Klingon D7 Cruiser, two destroyers, and one D6 were destroyed in the combat but the Federation fleet lost the USS Nautilus, USS Andoria, and USS Tellar in the fight. The engagement which occurred on July 20 was a significant engagement in the battle as the Klingons lost their capitol ship parity. Jon E. Williams pressed the assault a second time and the Armstrong, Organia, and Leander rallied the Federation remains of about 20 ships against the remains of the Klingon fleet near the moon. The Organia’s superior shields and weaponry proved to be capable in overwhelming the Klingon D7 Cruisers which outnumber the Federation Cruisers 6-2 (with 3 Federation Light Cruisers; Reliant, Armstrong, Sheridan). The Klingon fleet suffered casualties and once the battle turned against them evacuated the Andoria System on July 22, 2305. The Klingon ground troops were left behind with no hope for reinforcements. Despite this the combat continued until October before the ground forces fully surrendered. 

Outcome: Jon E. Williams arose to the rank of Federation Admiral for the victory. Although many of the original ships defending Andoria were lost, KIF II was decimated beyond hope of entering the Andoria System without reinforcements from the far away Klingon Empire. Significant number of Klingon Imperial ground troops were left behind and eventually surrender after a bloody ground war. The Federation suffered heavily in the battle but stopped the assault. This was the end of the Klingon early offensives and effectively ended the Klingon offensive part of the Andorian campaign. The Klingons would be forced far away from Andoria and the system would no longer come under threat for the rest of the war. 

Outcome of Andoria Campaign:

The Federation began a major counter attack in August of 2305. The Klingons quickly pulled out of the Alpha Centauri system after hearing of their defeat at Andoria. Denobula System was retaken quickly by a fleet led by Admiral Kirk who retired to Earth shortly after the battle handing his fleet over to Captain John Harriman who was promoted to Real Admiral. It would be the last major campaign overseen personally by the famous captain. The Klingon fleet eventually retreated all the way back Aldebaran system where KIF I could provide forces to assist KIF II against Federation offensives. The Federation was slow to relieve Berrengaria and it remained under siege until early 2306 (as described earlier). 

The Situation in 2306; War Expands

By May of 2306, the Klingons had reassembled their lines and still occupied about a quarter of Federation space. Despite this, the hope for early victory had failed and Rigel still held out. Tarnum needed about 6 months to repair and get ships back into his line for another planned offensive, until then, he wanted his most green force, KIF IV to launch an offensive to keep the Federation off balance. Bolarius was too difficult to capture so he knew it would need to be surrounded and cut off. He also hoped this plan would assist in later offensives. However, before Tarnum could debate a second offensive, the war scope changed with the Cardassian Union and Elerian Empire both declaring war on the Klingons on June 21, 2306 and invading outer Klingon Systems. Tarnum quickly rallied a large number of his reserve ships destined for the frontline and formed a KIF V force with himself directly in command. He wanted to defeat the Cardassians and Elerian Fleet early in the campaign. Despite the change in the war, KIF IV proceeded with the original plan of encircling Bolarius. 

Bolarius Campaign

Around June of 2306, KIF IV launched the Bolarius campaign by capture systems closer to the center of the galaxy (or labeled to the Southeast on Klingon maps). The Second Fleet was quick to draw them into battle and ship to ship fighting became common which created significant losses for the lesser trained and poorly motivated Romulans in the KIF IV force. However, Geron Martoc managed to take 8 Federation star systems by early August 2306. The commander of the Second Fleet, Admiral Cartwright, was very cautious against the Klingon-Romulan Force and never risked his entire fleet in the attack. Geron Martoc began to take advantage of this by performing many mass attacks on target systems and forcing the Federation to flee. Finally, Admiral Cartwright received notice from Starfleet that the Klingons were attempting to surround the Second Fleet as they did the First Fleet and he was given orders to meet Geron Martoc in combat. The Federation decided to make a stand at the Bethan System. 

The Battle of Bethan  
Date: September 10, 2306  
Outcome: Decisive Klingon Victory

Forces:

Federation Second Fleet: 

6 Heavy Cruisers: USS Saratoga [Flagship], USS Richelieu, USS Vulcan, USS Renown, USS Ajax, USS Achilles (Excelsior Class)

10 Cruisers: USS Galaxy, USS Hercules, USS Orion, USS Concord, USS Benzar (Constitution Class), USS Prometheus, USS Sydney, USS Hispania (Constellation Class), USS Nareth, USS Resolve (Saladin Class)

7 Light Cruisers: USS Medici, USS Trinidad, USS Independence, USS Dauntless, USS Moscow, USS Miranda (Miranda Class), USS Malta (Armstrong Class)

20 Destroyers: USS Thames, USS Ulyssess, USS Henry Hudson, USS Artic, USS Lincoln, USS P’Jem, USS Explorer (Soyuz Class), USS Necho, USS Issus, USS Socrates (Ptolemy Class), USS Trajan, USS Santa Maria, USS Discovery (Mayflower Class), 

130 Sabre Class Fighters, 20 Shuttlecrafts

Commander: Admiral Cartwright

Casualties: USS Achilles, USS Renown, USS Galaxy, USS Sydney, USS Hispania, USS Nareth, USS Trinidad, USS Thames, USS Lincoln, USS Explorer, USS Necho, USS Trajan, USS Discovery all lost. 102 Sabre Class and 8 Shuttlecrafts lost in the fight. Several ships severally damaged including Ajax and Saratoga and would require several months to repair. Around 900 Starfleet personnel killed.

KIF IV: 4 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 8 Klingon D7 Cruisers, 14 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 20 Romulan Bird of Preys, 8 Klingon Bird of Preys, 8 Klingon Destroyers, 12 Romulan Destroyers, 8 D6 Frigates, 100 Klingon Fighters

Commander: Geron Martoc, Regent of Klingon-Romulan Empire

Casualties: 1 Ktinga Battlecruiser, 1 Klingon D7, 6 Romulan D7, 3 Romulan Bird of Preys, 2 Klingon Destroyers, 6 Romulan Destroyers, 1 D6 Friage, and 89 Klingon Fighters lost in the Battle. Several ships damaged including one Battlecruiser that needed repair. Around 600 casualties

Discussion: The Klingon-Romulan Empire had mixed category of ships and mixed crews. A Klingon Commander was on every ship although at times a Romulan, if proved to be capable, was given command and the Klingon just served as an observer to make sure the Romulans followed orders. Romulan Bird of Preys (which were significantly different from the Klingon versions) were still produced in mass. The Romulan D7 Class Cruiser was also a little weaker but cheaper and easier to build then Klingon Cruisers and focused heavily on torpedo attacks over their phasor cannons.  
Admiral Cartwright’s decision to engage surprised Geron Martoc but the Federation ships did not attack first. Geron Martoc was allowed to make a decision for the attack; he decided to use the old strategy of a frontal assault while the Klingon Bird of Preys and a few Romulan Bird of Preys attack the Federation flank. The attack began roughly an hour after the two fleets met. The Klingon main fleet began to have trouble with the Federation Sabre fighters which hit the lines first. The Klingon fighters had trouble breaking them up so Martoc ordered the Klingon Destroyers and D6s to engage the fighters as well and continued his assault. Cartwright, believing that he had the Klingons where he wanted sent his entire fleet forward including his flagship which surprised Martoc. He ordered his ships to hold out until the Federation could be flanked. The Excelsiors proved to be damaging to Martoc’s fleet. Martoc ordered all fire on the Renown and Ajax damaged both ships severly and knocking out their weapon systems. Despite this, he had already lost one of his BattleCruisers and 2 Romulan D7s. In a controversial move, he ordered one of the Romulan D7s to fly at a couple of the Excelsiors in a suicidal path. Martoc then fired a torpedo at the D7 causing the D7 to explode destroying both the U.S.S. Achilles and US.S. Galaxy. With three Excelsiors out, the Klingons began to hold and then the flankers appeared. The Bird of Preys destroyed the damaged Renown as it was pulling out of the fight and knocked out several Federation Soyuz, Mayflower, and Ptolemy class ships in the rear. Admiral Cartwright, fearing the destruction of his fleet ordered a general retreat. The Klingons pursued and trapped several Federation ships in the pursuit destroying them. The Klingons suffered some damage but succeeded in driving the Federation fleet from the battle and inflicted more damage on the Federation. 

Outcome: Geron Martoc reported the battle to Tarnum who stated that finally he had a general that was acting as a real Klingon. Geron Martoc now had the strategic initiative which he used to surround the Second Fleet by capturing a large number of systems around Bolarius and Benzar. He would then start random raids and assaults on Bolarius hoping to push the Federation forces out of the region and to Benzar. 

Admiral Cartwright’s cautious nature was blamed for the failure that allowed the fleet to be surrounded. The Federation could not afford reinforcements at the time and was now required to hold a new front that was opened since the Fourth Fleet was surrounded and KIF IV had no fleet between them and the Federation Core systems. The Third Fleet sent ships to support systems along this new Klingon front. The Bolarius campaign had been a spectacular Klingon success. The Klingons, however, failed to move on the campaign as they did not have enough forces to hold extended territories deep in the Federation and the Klingon reinforcements gathered to support KIF III had to be moved to fight the Cardassians and Elerians. 

Cardassian-Elerian Campaign

Cardassia began pondering entry into the war as soon as the news broke of the Federation victory at Andoria. Cardassia was reluctant to challenge Tarnum before this time because they feared Tarnum was going to defeat the Federation. The Cardassian Central Command had signed a secret alliance with the Elerians against the Klingons earlier in the year and had allowed Elerian forces to enter Cardassian space and build up on the border. Despite this, the Cardassian Central Command decided to enter the war before they had completed the strategic build up to take advantage of the recent Klingon defeat. Not only did they enter into war tooearly but they failed to truly take advantage of the situation by only seizing five or six border systems in the first three months of the operations. The Elerians did not have significant enough forces along the border to make an offensive yet although a large Elerian fleet had entered Cardassian space within a month of their entry into the war but would take a week to get to the front.  
The Klingons gathered their reserve forces into a new fleet and headed towards the Cardassian border. The most troublesome concern for the Klingons was Cardassian ships entered Tzenkethi space and recruiting Tzenkethi into their ranks. General Chang had driven off a Cardassian fleet in early July of 2306 with light casualties on both sides. Tarnum decided to combine the reserves with General Chang’s small fleet and smash the Cardassian-Elerian force before it could do more damage. He wanted a decisive encounter which would be followed up by an invasion of Cardassian space.  
The Cardassian fleet was under command of Legate Lerra who was known more for his political scheming and dubious nature than as a military strategist. Early in the campaign, he had failed ot take advantage of the lack of Klingon forces in the area and decided to wait for the Elerian reinforcements. This allowed Tarnum time to arrive in the area before the Cardassians could do significant damage to the Klingon Empire. Once in the region, the Elerian fleet and their commander Leowth wanted to attack immediately. She argued against the Cardassians cautious approach towards Tarnum calling them cowards. The Cardassians, not wanting to appear weak or cowardly vowed to launch a major offensive. The attacks began on August 30, 2306 and the Cardassian-Elerian fleet captured 3 systems before meeting hard resistence from Tarnum’s force. Tarnum lured them to the Getakal System which was sparsely populated and had no real defenses but held strategic value as a base for the Allies to invade the Tzenkethi Empire and liberate it. Tarnum hid his fleet near the sun as the Elerians and Cardassian fleet approached. The Elerians began putting ground troops on the planet as expected by the Klingons. The planet was soon reinforced with Gorn troops who fought the Elerians fiercly. The Klingon fleet meanwhile emerged from the sun and the ensuing space battle over the Getakal System began.

Battle of Getakal  
Date: September 6, 2306  
Outcome: Decisive Klingon Victory

Klingon Forces: 3 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 10 D7 Cruisers, 2 Gorn Cruisers, 23 Destroyers, 30 Bird of Preys, 20 D6 Frigates, 300 Fighters, 42 Bombers  
Commanders: Emperor Tarnum, General Chang

Cardassian Forces: 10 Cruisers, 35 Destroyers, 20 Frigates, 100 Attackships  
Commander: Legate Lerra

Elerian Forces: 2 Battlecruisers, 2 Elerian Carriers, 6 Cruisers, 12 Destroyers, 8 Frigates, 220 Interceptors  
Commander: Countess Leowth

Description: The forces were about even in number of ships, but the Klingon ships were far better quality and Tarnum also caught his opponents by surprise. The Bird of Preys got of numerous critical shots in the ambush before the Cardassians and Elerians even raised their shields or began firing. Despite this the Cardassians and Elerians tried to fight valiantly. The Cardassian command ship was destroyed in the very early assault and the fleet tried to rally around the Elerians. The Klingon Bomber squads proved effective in knocking out an Elerian Carrier and Battlecruiser. The Ktinga and D7s had superior fire power and began to clear out the Cardassian/Elerian fleet. The Cardassians rushed their large destroyer fleet at the Klingon capital ships. The Klingons used fighters and bombers to hold off these assaults. The Elerian interceptors proved to be dangerous but they did not have the weaponry of the Klingon fighters and as the battle continued, even the famed Carrier groups of the Elerians failed the force. After several hours, over half of the Cardassian-Elerian fleet was destroyed and the rest began to flee. The Klingons pursued and destroyed many ships before they could get away. 

Outcome: The battle was devastating and it proved Tarnum still had his touch as a military strategist. It also proved how backwards the Cardassians and Elerian military technology was compared to the Klingon Empire. Soon after the Battle the Klingons drove the Cardassians out of their space and Tzenkethi space and began to drive deep into Cardassian territories. Tarnum, handed command of the invasion over to General Chang who had proved himself during the fighting. General Changs former command in Tzenkethi space proved to be a great spot to put the disgraced Rarl Worf. 

The Klingons pushed deep into Cardassian space. The Klingon Blitzkreig effectively trapped five Cardassian Orders behind Klingon lines as well as Billions of Cardassian Citizens. The arrival of more Elerian reinforcements and a Psilon fleet managed to stabilize the situation but General Chang managed to find a decent objective. Sensing the defeat of Cardassia and with encouragement by the Klingons, the Bajorans had rose up in rebellion and drove the Cardassians from their homeworld. General Chang ordered the Klingon fleet to push on to Bajor entering the system by late November 2306. From Bajor, the Klingons could threaten Cardassia, itself. Before any assault on Cardassia could be planned, Tarnum was forced to pull ships away from the Cardassian front to stop a major offensive launched by the Federation against KIF I and KIF II to relieve the pressure on the Cardassians. The Elerians, wanting to be bold began to organize smaller attacks against Klingon held systems. Ground fighting between the Elerians and the Klingons/Gorn over a small planet the Perat System became notorious as millions died in the bloody fighting. The Klingons meet a small Elerian Carrier group at the Battle of Hidroto System on December 28, 2306 and smashed the force. The Elerian Carrier and Interceptors proved incapable to match Klingon cruisers and would have to reorganize their strategy. The Elerian lines were saved by a quick and timely arrival of the Cardassian fleet to restore the gap. The Elerian aggression was costing the allies but the Elerians still continued minor raids and landings on Klingon occupied worlds in weaker systems. 

Federation Offensive in December of 2306

Primarily to relieve the pressure of the Cardassian Union and her allies, the Federation launched a major offensive to cut a hole in the Klingon Lines and relieve Rigel in December of 2306. Tarnum realized the Federation strategy early in the offensive and rushed some of his ships to join a force from KIF I and KIF II. Tarnum took command of a large Klingon force destined to meet the Federation Fleet. The two collided in the Delta System.

Battle of Delta  
Date: December 12, 2306  
Result: Decisive Klingon Victory

Forces:

Federation: 

6 Heavy Cruisers: USS Mushashi (Federation Class), USS Yorktown, USS Lexington-B, USS Nelson, USS Enterprise-B, USS Organia, USS Triton (Excelsior Class)

10 Cruisers: USS Enterprise-A, USS Lexington-A, USS Leander, USS Liberty, USS Odyssey, USS Kepler, USS Kennedy (Constitution), USS Ceres, USS Andromeda (Constellation Class), USS Cochise (Saladin Class)

8 Light Cruisers: USS Armstrong, USS Sprite (Armstrong Class), USS Hercules, USS Reliant, USS Sheridan, USS Botic, USS Challenger, USS Giovanni (Miranda Class)

21 Destroyers: USS Hermes, USS Perth, USS Apollo, USS Vladivostock, and USS Melbourne Star (Mayflower Class); USS Trill, USS Susan B. Anthony, USS Adriatic, USS Kyushu, USS Inflexible, USS Jupiter, USS Soval, USS Shran, USS Cygnus (Soyuz Class); USS Antiochus, USS Plato, USS Demetri, USS Tyre, USS Argos (Ptolemy Class); USS Tellar, USS Phibis (Kelvin Class), 4 Orion Destroyers.

Other Craft: 120 Sabre Fighters, 2 Trilarian Frigates

Commanders: Admiral Ohsaki, Rear Admiral Jon E. Williams, Rear Admiral Manish Patel, Captain Chekov, Captain John Harriman

Casualties: USS Mushashi, USS Triton, USS Nelson, USS Enterprise-A, USS Lexington-A, USS Kepler, USS Kennedy, USS Ceres, USS Andromeda, USS Armstrong, USS Hercules, USS Botic, USS Giovanni, USS Hermes, USS Vladivostock, USS Perth, USS Susan B. Anthony, USS Inflexible, USS Jupiter, USS Soval, USS Cygnus, USS Antiochus, USS Demetri, USS Tyre, USS Tellar, all 4 Orion Destroyers, both Trilarian Frigates, and 91 Sabre Fighters lost. Admiral Ohsaki and Captain Chekov KIA. Around 1200 Star Fleet Personnel killed in space fight, another 100,000 died on planet. 1,000,000 citizens of Delta V died in combat on planet or bombardment after by the Klingons.

Klingon: 4 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 18 D7 Cruisers, 28 Destroyers, 26 Bird of Preys, 20 D6 Frigates, 200 Fighters, 40 Bombers  
Commander: Tarnum, General Larr, General Kala Harot

Casualties: 1 Ktinga Battlecruiser, 7 D7 Cruisers, 8 Destroyers, 16 Bird of Preys, 8 D6 Frigates, 79 Fighters, and 30 Bombers destroyed. Around 800 Klingons killed in Space Battle, another 80,000 killed in planetary fighting. 

Description: The Federation force facing the Klingons had a lower number of ships but more firepower. Tarnum knew that he his fleet was at a disadvantage. He also had to keep some of KIF I back to defend against the Federation First Fleet at Rigel to prevent a counteroffensive by this fleet against his flank. Tarnum also knew that some of the Commanders they faced at Andoria and Berrengaria were present. Tarnum did not have the fighter or bomber craft to overwhelm the Federation but had managed to call in many of his nearby Bird of Preys to assist. They would be invaluable in this fight.  
The Federation Fourth Fleet was reorganized and sent on the counteroffensive. There were several green crews in the force but they were counterbalanced by many of Jon E. William’s veterans from the Andoria Campaign including the famous ship and crews: USS Organia, USS Armstrong, USS Reliant, USS Hermes and USS Sheridan. The original Enterprise-A crew was also present with Commander Chekov commanding her. There was also a second ship called “Enterprise” in the battle; the updated Excelsior-Class, Enterprise-B, commanded by John Harriman. Interestingly this wasn’t the only dual name as there was the original Constitution Class Lexington present as well as the updated Excelsior class variant.  
The Federation had entered the system and seized Delta V from the Klingons after a week-long struggle that saw significant casualties for the Deltan militia force. The Federation fleet was ready to move on towards Rigel when the Klingons launched a surprise attack into the system. Tarnum divided his fleet into two and hit the Federation fleet from both sides with the Bird of Preys striking first after decloaking. Once again, a couple of Federation ships were destroyed before they could raise shields but being prepared for this attack, many had shields active already or got them up once the fleet announced warp signatures. The fighting got intense soon after but Tarnum ordered his Ktinga Battlecruisers to focus on the slow Federation-Class Mushashi which was commanded by Admiral Ohsaki. The ship was destroyed within ten minutes of the initial attack and Admiral Ohsaki was killed. Leaderless, the fleet fell under command of Jon E. Williams and he rallied the fleet from the USS Organia. He ordered the fleet to fight their way out of the battle. The Klingon Bird of Preys suffered heavy damaged as the fleet rallied. Tarnum began to worry that the battle was going against the Klingons. He ordered his fleet to focus on the lighter ships and inflict as much damage as possible. He wanted to mass attack the Federation fleet before they could escape. The casualties ran high as both fleets engaged but the Federation took more damage because they could not position their fleet correctly or organize the ships into lines. Tarnum began taking advantage of the disorganization of the Federation fleet by ordered his cruisers to hit the ships one by one. The Federation fleet’s numbers continue to drop and Jon E. Williams ordered a full retreat. The Enterprise-A took severe damage and was destroyed by General Larr’s Battlecruiser. It was a major propaganda victory. Enterprise-B suffered heavy damages by lowering their shields and beaming several membesr of the crew aboard including the famous engineer, Scotty, and the famous communication officer Uhura. Despite the effort, Captain Chevok was killed in the fight. The Enterprise-B escaped but suffered heavy damage. 

Outcome: The Federation fleet was devastated but all was not lost as several ships survived including the Organia, Reliant, Sheridan, and Enterprise-B which contained talented leaders that would have a major affect, later, in the outcome of the war. The Federation did maintain 4 of the 6 Excelsior and half the Mirandas and Constitutions keeping most of their better-armed and newer ships still in action. Most of the casualties to the Klingons in the battle were dealt by these three ship classes. Jon E. Williams did lose two ships from his famous reinforcement fleet, the USS Hermes and USS Armstrong.  
It was a major victory for the Klingons who stopped the Federation’s momentum, held their flank against Cardassia, and scored a major propaganda victory. Tarnum was approaching legendary status among the Klingons, with many even considering him greater than Kahless. Even many of his enemies considered Tarnum to be the greatest General ever seen. The Klingons soon began to plan their next offensive into the Federation. A key note is that the Klingon Bird of Preys and Bombers suffered heavily in the battle having been sent as attack wings to cover the main fleet. 

The War’s status by the beginning of 2307

The main front of the Federation war, that saw most of the engagement in the previous year, experienced little movement in 2307 until December (but still heavy combat on several small planets between ground forces of both Nations as well as ship raiding persisted). The main fighting that fall had been along the Romulan-Federation border planets and along the Klingon/Tzenkethi-Cardassian front. The Cardassian Union saw three-fifths of its Empire captured by the Klingons after the destruction of the fleet and the Klingons appeared to be nearing total victory after the defeat of the Federation Fourth Fleet in the Delta System. However, problems were emerging for Tarnum. Gnolam, Psilon, and Elerian ships were entering Cardassian space to reinforce and prop up the Cardassians. The Cardassians were also aggressively rebuilding their fleet. The Cardassian Central Command decided to adjust their strategy at the advice of Gul Lobum to start mass attacking enemy capital ships with large numbers of Destroyers. This strategy would prove to be more favorable in the future fight with the Klingons.  
Rebellions were beginning to gain strength in the Mrrshan, Tzenkethi and Romulan Empires which would require more Klingon attention as the war progressed. The Federation war economy was beginning to pick up and despite losing some valuable systems, the Federation still had a lot of resources to pull on including its new member Trill. Trilar also provided valuable agricultural resources. Shipyards at Earth, Alpha Centauri, Andoria, Tellar, Denobula, and Vulcan began to push out ships at a faster rate than the Klingon shipyards. The Federation would also begin working on a new designed starship, the Ambassador Class; that would prove far more superior to the Ktinga and Excelsior classes and would dominate space fights. This class would not be coming into play, however, until late in the war.  
Despite this fact, confidence was high in not just the Klingon Empire but even among is opponents that the Klingon Empire was on the verge of total victory, even with the Federation’s new allies joining the war. The Federation had just staved off a major offensive into its core systems the previous year and was preparing for a second one. 2307 would be a crucial year for the war as the Allies needed victories.

The Vulcan Offensive

It took three months for the Klingons to plan their next great offensive. In April of 2307, the Klingons heavily reinforced the renemant of KIF III and began a large offensive along this front with the goal of taking Vulcan. Tarnum knew he didn’t have the ships to take Earth but hoped that Vulcan’s capture would collapse the Federation. Tarnum also hoped that KIF IV would get involved in the action as well and ordered KIF IV to push towards Vulcan along another front. Tarnum, however, didn’t exepect significant aid from KIF IV until KIF III’s offensive showed major progress. KIF IV was still needed to keep the Federation Second Fleet bottled up. Tarnum also ordered renewed offensives against the Rigel pocket hoping to break it. General Larr wanted the full fleet to focus on Rigel to free up the ships around it but Tarnum objected arguing that this was the time to attack the Federation after the Klingon victory at Delta.  
Starfleet noticed the incursions early on and newly-made Rear Admiral Hiroki Sulu began a slow retreat with the Third Fleet in response to the Klingons invasion hoping to pick away at KIF III in smaller fights and avoid seriously compromising the Fleet. Rear Admiral Jon E. Williams was expected to be moved into position to support Admiral Sulu but he spoke out against this move proposing another plan. Williams wanted to relieve the Second Fleet by attacking KIF IV near the Horace System, cut a hole in the Klingon lines, and drive on to relieve the Bolarius pocket. He argued that KIF IV could join with the other Klingon invaders the Third Fleet was pushed back too far and that there would not be another Berrengaria to stop them. James T. Kirk liked the idea and began supporting it openly. Admiral Cartwright also supported the idea from Bolarius since it would relieve his fleet. Admiral Cartwright also argued that a large number of Second Fleet ships could be pulled out to help stop the offensive if Williams was successful. After a heated debate, Starfleet approved William’s plan. Williams was pulled out from the defensive lines along the Denobulan front and Starfleet sent Admiral L’Pok of the Vulcan Militia force to co-command Third Fleet and the reformed and rearmed Vulcan Defense Force. Additionally, a newly arrived fleet of Psilon ships was to be sent to support the Third Fleet.  
The Williams plan began almost immediately. The small fleet of veterans with Jon E. Williams and Manish Patel reached the Klingon lines within a couple of weeks. By the end of April, Williams had liberated three systems and it was clear that Geron Martoc had to engage. Admiral Cartwright in communication with Jon E. Williams managed to send some ships to support Jon E. William’s offensive. 

Battle of Horace  
Date: April 30-31, 2307  
Outcome: Decisive Federation Victory

Forces:

Jon E. Williams’ Fleet: USS Organia and USS Monitor (Excelsior Class), USS Leander (Constitution Class), USS Sheridan, USS Reliant, USS Challenger (Miranda Class), USS Sprite (Armstrong Class), USS Melbourne Star (Mayflower Class), USS Europa (Soyuz Class), USS Tyre (Ptolemy Class), 30 Sabre Fighters 

Admiral Cartwright’s Reinforcements: USS Saratoga, USS Richelieu (Excelsior Class), USS Hercules, USS Orion (Constitution Class), USS Prometheus (Constellation Class), USS Independence, USS Dauntless (Miranda Class), USS Malta (Armstrong Class), USS Santa Maria (Mayflower Class). 45 Sabre Fighters and 30 Bolian Fast Attack Ships. 

Casualties: Very Lite: USS Challenger, USS Europa, USS Independence, 28 Sabre Fighters, 3 Bolian Attack Ships. 338 Starfleet Personnel Lost, 6 Bolian Pilots killed.

Klingon Forces: 2 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 4 Klingon D7 Cruisers, 10 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 15 Romulan Bird of Preys, 2 Klingon Destroyers, 4 Klingon Bird of Preys, 4 Romulan Destroyers, 2 D6 Frigates, 12 Klingon Fighters, 40 Romulan Attack Fighters.

Commander: Geron Martoc, Regent of Klingon-Romulan Empire

Casualties: 1 Klingon D7 Cruiser, 4 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 3 Romulan Bird of Preys, 1 Klingon Destroyer, 1 Klingon Bird of Prey, Both Klingon D6 Frigates, 23 Romulan Attack Fighters and all 12 Klingon Fighters destroyed. 3 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 8 Romulan Bird of Preys, 1 Romulan Destroyer, and 10 Romulan Attack Fighters surrendered to Federation forces, many were later incorporated into Romulan Rebel forces. Around 600 Casualties

Description: Rear Admiral Jon E. Williams was successful in luring the Klingons to battle. His aggressiveness caught Geron Martoc off-guard who had grown use to the cautious nature of Admiral Cartwright. Despite this, Geron Martoc took a heavy portion of his fleet and decided to stop the new fleet under Williams. Williams led him to the Horace System as expected and the Klingons took the bait. One mistake made by Geron Martoc was his failure in guarding his flank. Geron Martoc did not prepare for a major reinforcement fleet from Cartwright, who had shown to be a timid commander. He did leave several ships behind but two-thirds of his fleet was chasing Williams smaller but powerful fleet.  
Williams wanted to attack Martoc. Geron Martoc had one disadvange, he had very few fighter craft or Klingon Bird of Preys available having lost them in earlier engagements and had never received reinforcements from Qonos as these ships had been deployed to other fronts. Most of Martoc’s fleet was Romulan in characteristic making the typical Klingon strategies of the past impossible. Geron choose to engage William’s fleet head on in traditional style and not rely on difficult blitzkrieg strategies as he did not trust the courage or loyalty of the Romulans in his fleet. In the end, despite having superior numbers early in the fight, Geron’s fleet had weaker ships with weaker crew morale. These factors provided little opportunity for strategic maneuvers.  
On the opposite side, Williams had the loyalty of his fleet. He had the capable Manish Patel who had been given command of a new Excelsior starship, the USS Monitor. He also had Cartwright coming with some of his faster ships which Williams wanted to flank the Klingons. However, the Second Fleet was several hours away from the fight and Williams would have to hold on until they could arrive.  
Williams decided to not delay the attack out of concern that Martoc would learn of the reinforcements. He attacked the Klingon fleet right away sending the USS Organia, USS Leander, and USS Reliant to immediately attack Martoc’s single Ktinga Battlecruiser. Martoc pulled his flagship back from the fight as Williams expected to meet up with the other Ktinga Battlecruiser in the fleet. Martoc surrounded the three ships with his D7 cruisers but the Mirandas ships along with the USS Sprite began to hit the Romulan D7s hard. The Romulan Bird of Preys reinforced and began to inflict their damage. The USS Tyre made a run to break out of the formation and was pursued by several Romulan Destroyers. The Tyre would hold out against superior odds in a chase. The USS Europe was destroyed by overwhelming Klingon-Romulan smaller ships and fire. However, it did take a D6 Frigate with it. William’s fleet, faced with superior numbers, fell back and initiated hit and run tactics. The Federation ships could out run most of Martoc’s fleet and they began to fire at isolated ships. Several Romulan D7s were knocked out of action. However, the battle was turning towards the Klingons. The maneuvers appeared to the Martoc as if the Federation Fleet was in the process of retreating but in fact they were delaying maneuvers. Several hours passed with little damage being inflicted to either fleet as the older Romulan ships had a hard time keeping up with the Excelsiors and Mirandas. It was then that Cartwright’s fleet finally arrived flanking the Klingons and attacking the 2 Ktinga Battlecruisers first. The Klingon fleet pulled back to relieve their leader and then Williams rushed them from the other side. Martoc began to panic and ordered retreat. However, many ships were not able to pull out in time without being destroyed. Several Romulan ships ssurrendered rather than follow the Klingons in retreat. By the morning of April 31st, there was no hostile ships left in the Horace System and the way was open to Bolarius. 

Outcome: This was a huge victory for the Federation at the right time. Both fleets took very light casualties. However, the Ferederation did capture many Romulans and ships that would be re-incorporated later during the invasion of Romulus as a part of a growing rebel Romulan movement. The Klingon-Romulans were forced to push back into Romulan space and the Federation was able take away ships from this front to aid with the Vulcan offensive. Any hope of KIF IV reinforcements for the Vulcan Campaign were dashed. Tarnum blamed Geron Martoc for the loss but did not order his resignation for fear of isolating the Martoc family. However, it was not fair to blame the defeat on Martoc as he did not have the quality forces necessary to face the Veteran Federation Fleet. As the battle revealed, Romulan relations were severely strained and the Romulans were not dependable for the war effort. Martoc’s puppet state was already showing signs of strain and revolt. The Romulan Military fleet near Checas, in Silicoid Spance, had never official surrendered and was started to drive towards Romulan space. Another rebellion was beginning in the Yu’el System. This rebellion would gain support from the Federation and many of the Romulans captured at the Battle of Horace would join up with this rebel force. The Klingon commanders that were force to surrender on the Romulan ships were imprisoned in the Federation until after the war. This would bring a change policy of Martoc who told all Klingon commanders that surrender was not possible and that surrender would bring shame on their house. The Klingon commanders would have to “keep” their Romulan crews in line even if it meant by force.  
Jon E. Williams was given the rank of Admiral but was not able to follow-up his victory. He was ordered to move his small fleet back to the front and fight KIF III. He took several ships of the Second Fleet with him and his force was organized into the Seventh Fleet which had the nickname “William’s Vets”. 

Prelude to P’Jem

KIF III continued to progress towards its objective as Sulu and L’Pok gave ground against the superior fleet. The Bird of Preys were less effective this time as the Federation fleet scattered and engage them when they broke off from the main Klingon fleet. If the main Klingon fleet tried to punch a hole, the Federation gave way and retreated. It was frustrating to Tarnum and General Hag Madon who could not lure the Federation into any meaningful fights and did little damage to the Federation fleet while the Klingons continued to lose ships here or there in small fights when they broke off from their main body. Tarnum had to watch his flank as Federation ships tried to flank him, most notable the Seventh Fleet under Williams who was harassing his suppy lines and the rear of his advance. Many of the Klingon officers wanted to fall back to the Klingon lines but Tarnum rejected the calls and ordered the fleet to seize more systems to cover the flank. The Klingons began to be spread thin defending the vast number of systems that were required to be occupied.  
It took three months of campaigning, with the Klingons often being distracted and resorting to defend their flank before they could get close to any of their objectives. The rapid speed and success of the earlier offensives had slowed in the face of changing Federation tactics. Half the Klingon force was deployed in the conquered systems behind the main force to hold off Federation threats, most notably the Seventh Fleet. The Federation Third Fleet continued to fall back but decided to rally in the Lochkta System near Vulcan. The Fleet began to gather there and at Vulcan itself to wait for the Klingon attack. The Klingons seized Manora and Coridan by August 12, 2307 and prepared to invade Vulcan itself.  
The first assault saw little success as the Klingon fleet entering Vulcan space was met by extreme resistance and force to withdraw. Meanwhile elements of the Fourth Fleet began a counter-offensive from the Berrengaria system and harass the Klingon reserves and supply line. Tarnum did not order an invasion of Berrengaria fearing another long siege there. However, he knew Vulcan was going to be a tough nut to crack now and any movement by his fleet would be met in like kind by the Federation. He decided to order Hag Madon and KIF III to launch an attack on what he thought was a more vulnerable target, the P’Jem system. This system would be a great base from which to cut off supplies to Vulcan from the rest of the Federation and perhaps scare the Federation fleet into sending ships to defend Earth. Admiral Sulu discovered the strategy though a Romulan spy and sent a small task force to P’Jem to report of any incursion by the Klingon fleet. On September 1, 2307, the Klingons started a large offensive into P’Jem and the Third Fleet quickly sent reinforcements. 

The Battle of P’Jem  
Date: September 2 – 19, 2307  
Outcome: Federation Victory

Forces:

Third Fleet  
Commanders: Admiral Sulu, Admiral L’Pok

Heavy Cruisers 4: USS Excelsior, USS Yorktown, USS Warspite, USS Tirpitz (Excelsior Class)

Cruisers 13: USS Intrepid, USS Bretagne, USS Essex, USS Gandhi, USS Illustrious, USS California, USS Soryu (Constitution Class), USS Nebula, USS Alpa (Constellation Class), USS Kashmir, USS Isfahan, USS Niger, USS Coridan (Saladin Class)

Light Cruisers 14: USS Mantadore, USS Alderan (Armstrong Class), USS Meteorite, USS Chancellor, USS Freedom, USS Zeus, USS Mapow, USS Camelot, USS Rigel, USS Pacifica, USS Mercury (Miranda Class), 2 Trilarian Light Cruisers, 1 Orion Cruiser

Destroyers 35: USS Galvin, USS Spock, USS Niagara, USS Kyoto, USS Magna Carta, USS Trill, USS Kerrigan (Soyuz Class); USS Paulus Potter, USS Merchantman, USS Captain Ahab, USS Journeyman (Mayflower Class), USS Seleucus, USS Antiochus, USS Alexander, USS Companion, USS Cleopatra (Ptolemy Class), USS Centauri, USS Tellar, USS Mook (Kelvin Class); USS Christaan Huygens, USS Hubble (Oberth Class), 8 Trilarian Destroyers, 7 Orion Destroyers

12 Trilarian Frigates, 100 Sabre Class Fighters, 10 Bolt class bombers

Vulcan Defense Fleet: 8 Vulcan Destroyers, 11 Vulcan Light Warships, 40 Vulcan Attackships  
Commander: Admiral L’Pok

Psilon Fleet: 3 Psilon Cruisers, 8 Psilon Destroyers, 12 Psilon Frigates, 38 Psilon Interceptors  
Commander: Marus

Federation/Vulcan Troops on P’Jem: 3 Million ground units including mobile units and pilots in Vulcan Attackships

Allied Casualties: USS Yorktown, USS Tirpitz, USS Intrepid, USS Bretagne, USS California, USS Soryu, USS Alpa, USS Kashmir, USS Isfahan, USS Niger, USS Mantadore, USS Meteorite, USS Chancellor, USS Freedom, USS Mercury, USS Galvin, USS Niagara, USS Magna Carta, USS Merchantman, USS Captain Ahab, USS Seleucus, USS Alexander, USS Cleopatra, USS Centauri, USS Mook, and USS Hubble all lost. 3 Trilarian and 2 Orion Destroyers lost. 63 Sabre Class Fighters, and 3 Bolt Class Bombers lost. 

5 Vulcan Destroyers, 6 Vulcan Light Warships, and 33 Vulcan Attackships lost. 

1 Psilon Cruisers, 5 Psilon Destroyers, 3 Psilon Frigats, and 13 Psilon Interceptors Destroyer.

Over 9.5 million Federation soldiers and civilians died on P’Jem.

KIF III: 5 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 20 D7 Cruisers, 34 Destroyers, 18 Bird of Preys, 38 D6 Frigates, 200 Fighters, 50 Bombers, 120 Transports, 6 million ground troops in battle, 2 million in reserve  
Commander: Hag Madon with Tarnum advising  
Casualties: 3 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 8 D7 Cruisers, 8 Destroyers, 10 Bird of Preys, 8 D6 Frigates, 57 Fighters, 3 Transports, and 12 Bombers lost. 6 million ground troops killed or captured. 

Description: The Klingons did not know that they were entering a trap. A Romulan Spy was responsible for divulging valuable information regarding the campaign to the Federation. The Federation had already deployed the Vulcan Defense Force (VDF) and their Psilon allies to the system before the assault. Admiral Sulu was in command of the rest of the Third Fleet and was waiting to enter the fray. The Fleet had been buffed up by new Miranda and Constitution Class starships since their last battles at Berrengaria. They also received the new Excelsior-Class Ship, USS Warspite, on the eve of the battle. This ship was heavily armored and had a priority on combat unlike other Federation ships. The Third Fleet also still contained renemants of the Orion fleet and received reinforcements from Trilarian and older or non-combat focused Federation ships (Oberth, Saladin, Kelvin, and Constellation class ships) that had been deployed as a reserve fleet in Vulcan.  
Although not participating in the battle, the Seventh Fleet would also have a huge impact as they kept other Klingon ships from joining the battle by launching counteroffensives against the Klingon bulge in Federation space. Combat already started in the Lochta system as parts of the Seventh and Second Fleet invaded the system while the Klingons besieged P’Jem.  
The Klingon arrived and engaged the VDF and Psilons on September 2nd. The VDF and Psilons were pushed back with casualties and the Klingons began to invade P’Jem itself with troops. The Vulcans were not accustomed to ground fighting and the Klingons began to inflict major ground casualties. The Klingons controlled the air and by September 9th, 2307 they controlled 78% of the planet.  
The Third Fleet meanwhile had arrived later in the evening on September 2nd after the Klingons. The Third Fleet beamed down ground troops and attacked the Klingons. Both fleets suffered casualties and the Klingons pulled back to the outer stretch of the solar system. The Federation fleet pursued instead of providing relief to P’Jem, something that Starfleet repreminded Sulu for later. The Klingons fought hard and the Third Fleet was forced away from the system with casualties. Hag Madon had used hit and run tactics on the Third Fleet and had scattered their ships as a means to split up the superior Federation force. The Federation scattered to pursue and broke lines. The Klingons focused fire on some of the larger ships and damaged them forcing them into a retreat from the system. The Federation fleet went for repair but would return within a week. The Klingons use this time to assist in the occupation of P’Jem.  
The Third Fleet returned on September 11th to continue the relief effort. Sulu had rallied more ships and had a large compliment of his fleet including the VDF, the Trilarians, and the surviving ships of the Psilon fleet. The Federation fleet attacked the Klingon center hoping to destroy the capital ships with their superior numbers. The battle was once against costly but the Klingon fleet was split in half and fleed broken from the fight. 3 of the 5 Ktinga Battlecruisers were destroyed. The USS Warspite was very effective in the fight having out gunned and destroying a Battlecruiser all by itself. The USS Excelsior under Admiral Sulu also performed courageously. Admiral L’Pok’s force destroyed several Bird of Preys which hampered Hag Madon’s attempt to flank the Federation fleet. 

Outcome: Casualties during the campaign were about even but the Federation could afford the casualties more than the Klingons who were already overstretched. The Klingons would begin a slow retreat back to their original lines prior to the Vulcan Offensive in April. Fighting on P’Jem would continue until the 19th when the Klingon forces would surrender knowing that relief was not coming. 

The Retreat and New Federation Strategy

After the failure at P’Jem, Tarnum ordered all the forces to fall back and form a new defensive line. The capture of Vulcan was now impossible. However, before the Klingons could form a line, the Seventh Fleet attacked the reserve near the Galo System knocking out 2 Klingon D7 Cruisers and 5 Bird of Preys without losing a single ship. The Seventh Fleet was now in position to envelop the Klingon forces. Hag Madon ordered a swift retreat forcing the Klingons to leave ground troops behind. In the pursuit, the Seventh Fleet inflicted more damage as they attacked the main body from P’Jem and destroyed 8 D6 Frigates with the loss of only three Sabre Class Fighters. These maneuvers disoriented the Klingons and caused more Klingon nobles to call for the head of Hag Madon who was blamed for the failure of the offensive. Tarnum retired him from command and gave the command over to Jogam Kerish. Jogam would lack experience and the situation would get worse. The Klingon’s orderly fall back now turned into a full retreat. Tarnum gave a strick order now that they regroup at the lines they held before April. The Klingons abandoned all their gains by October 23, 2307. The Vulcan offensive represented the highwater mark for Tarnum’s Empire. However, the offensive had been an utter failure and waste of Klingon resources. It would be the last major invasion of the Federation by the Klingons as the Klingons would be forced on the defensive for the rest of the War.  
It was another major turning point in the conflict and helped enhance the reputation of Jon E. Williams who Starfleet decided to give a major command. Star Fleet wanted him to relieve Rigel but Jon E. Williams declined arguing that the Seventh Fleet should join with the Second Fleet and push into Romulan space. Admiral Williams argued that the weak spot of the Klingons was their Romulan occupation and that the liberation of Romulus would create another major ally for their war effort, create a new front for the Klingons, and would help to overwhelm the already overstreteched Klingon Empire. Williams argued the time was ripe as Romulan rebellions were increasing and the Romulans were growing tired of Klingon occupation. He also argued that KIF IV commanded by Regent Geron Martoc was the weak point of the Klingon Fleet and would not be able to hold back a major Federation push supported by Romulan Rebels.  
Admiral Kirk liked the plan and supported it. Star Fleet decided to leave Rigel to the Fourth Fleet to liberate and allowed the Seventh Fleet to join with the Second Fleet for an offensive into Romulan space. The offensive was to begin in early January 2308. The Federation was risking losing the First Fleet and Rigel pocket in hopes of liberating the Romulan Star Empire. 

The Cardassian Front in the Fall of 2307

The Bajorans were a thorn on the Cardassian front as they raided Cardassian territory and continued to allow the Klingons to operate a base near the Cardassian Home System keeping the Cardassian fleet bottled up there. The Elerians continued their sporadic raids on the Klingons to the annoyance of General Chang. The Klingon front was shaky and a majority of the main Klingon fleet was situated in Bajoran space threatening Cardassia. Chang decided to redeploy some ships to deal with the Elerian raids. A minor skirmish occurred near the Chin’Lota System on October 31, 2307. The Klingons attacked the Elerian fleet and pushed them back into Cardassian space. The Cardassian leader, Gul Lobum, ambushed the Klingons and using a mass of Destroyers managed to knock out 5 Klingon Bird of Preys and 1 D7 Cruiser with the loss of only 5 Cardassian destroyers. Gul Lobum used the victory to retake 4 systems and push the Klingons back. Although only a minor victory strategically with only one of the four systems liberated having any significant settlement, the battle was a major morale boost for the Cardassian Union which had seen nothing but defeat against Tarnum up until this point. 

War situation in 2308

The opening of 2308 saw a major stalemate along the front. Tarnum now proposed a less ambitious plan to break the stalemate, he wanted to capture Rigel in an all-out assault and destroy this Federation pocket. The truth was the Klingons needed ships freed up to deal with growing rebellions. The Romulan Imperial Fleet occupied a small pocket along Silicoid space that was slowly expanding into the Romulan Star Empire and becoming an actual threat to KIF IV. Tarnum knew that KIF IV was in a weak spot facing both Romulan rebellions and the Federation fleet; however, he never expected a major offensive from the Federation. Tarnum continued to believe that the Federation attack would be focused on relieving the Rigel pocket. The Klingon-Romulan fleet was reinforced by Darlok ships which Tarnum thought could hold the line. The situation in the Tzenkethi Empire and on the Cardassian front was also not going well for the Klingons. Cardassians, Elerians, and Psilons now outnumbered the Klingons on the front 2 to 1. If not for a strongly fortified Bajor and the tentativeness of the Cardassians, the Klingons would have feared losing this front. The Tzenkethi had built a small fleet in some outer systems and continued to resist despite Ralr Worf’s attempts to defeat them. The Tzenkethi continued to flee further and further out into space everytime Worf and the Klingons mounted an offensive. A similar issue was occurring on the Mrrshan front although the Mrrshans had a very small fleet that served as nothing more than a nuisance for the time being.  
The Allies did not grasp the vulnerableness of the Klingons on the Cardassian front but Admiral Williams had rightly guessed that the Klingon position in Romulan space was tenious. He organized an offensive that would encompass the new Romulan rebel movement based out of the Yu’el System, the Federation Second Fleet, the Bolarians, and his Seventh Fleet. The offensive would have two objectives, to meet up with the Romulan Imperial Fleet renemant near the Checas System as well as proceed to destroy KIF IV and retake Romulus. After much debate, Admiral Williams decided upon splitting his force into two parts with each half focusing on one of the two objectives. Admiral Williams informed his force that speed was their main objective and provided the following quote, “Just as the Klingons took the Romulan Star Empire in about a year, I believe that we can, with the assistance of the Romulan people, retake the Romulan Star Empire in a year. If we do not act fast, we will fail in our campaign as the Klingons will surely send reinforcements. Speed is the priority in this offensive.” The Romulan offensive would be the first major event of 2308 and would alter the strategic situation of the war forcing the Klingons on the defensive for good. 

The beginning of the Romulan Offensive

On January 5, 2308, the Second and Seventh Fleet of the Federation launched an assault against KIF IV attacking them first at the border system of Opas. At the Battle of Opas, Jon E. Williams wanted to lure KIF IV to its destruction but the Klingon-Romulan fleet gave way to the superior Federation forces with several Romulan crews deserting and fighting off the Klingon commanders on their ships. Despite the loss, the Klingons maintained the bulk of their fleet which began a retreat in the face of a strong Federation force. The Romulan Rebels soon met up with the Federation and they would join the Seventh Fleet in its push towards Romulus while the Second Fleet under Admiral Cartwright pushed towards Checas.  
Geron Martoc sent word to Tarnum that he could not hold against the Federation and Romulan Rebels. Tarnum stated that he would send part of KIF III to reinforce while the other half would focus on Rigel. Tarnum decided to speed up the attack on Rigel in hopes of drawing the Federation away from Romulus. This was a miscalculation by Tarnum as the Federation was already too invested in the Romulan offensive. Tarnum failed to grasp how tenious the Klingon situation was in Romulan Space until too late.  
Geron Martoc had to begin deciding where to fight the Federation offensives. As they entered new systems, the populace often welcomed them as liberators. Klingon citizens in the state were attacked, robbed, and sometimes murdered despite attempts by the Federation to protect them.  
The Federation was moving too fast for Geron Martoc to mount a major counter-offensive and most of his forces loyalty was dubious at best. Many Romulan systems put up only token resistance. Geron Martoc decided to take a stand at Nisbus. He had received reinforcements from the Darlok Coalition and had his force was prepared to fight.  
Admiral Williams was glad to hear the news that a fight would be brewing, he wanted to meet Geron head on and topple his fleet in one decisive battle. He also hoped to keep Martoc away from the Second Fleet which was on course to meet up with the Romulan Imperial Fleet. Geron Martoc had hoped to engage the Seventh Fleet at Nisbus and delay it until he could send his fleet out to stop the Second Fleet which he rightfully considered to actually be the true threat. However, without halting the Seventh Fleet, he would be helpless to stop the Second Fleet because his forces would be open to being enveloped. Before the battle, Geron Martoc wrote back to the Klingon High Council and Tarnum fearing the worse. He was out numbered and was being outmaneuvered. He hoped that Nisbus could change his fortune.

The Battle of Nisbus  
Date: February 27, 2308  
Outcome: Decisive Federation Victory

Forces

Allies:  
Federation Seventh Fleet: USS Organia, USS Gilgriese and USS Monitor (Excelsior Class), USS Hercules, USS Sapporo, USS Missouri, USS Isidro, USS Leander (Constitution Class), USS Sheridan, USS Trento, USS Borodino, USS Hammer, USS Reliant, (Miranda Class), USS Sprite, USS Malta (Armstrong Class), USS Melbourne Star, USS Pinta (Mayflower Class), USS Bynum, USS Voyager (Soyuz Class), USS Tyre, USS Babylon (Ptolemy Class), 2 Bolian Destroyers, 80 Sabre Fighters  
Commanders: Admiral Jon E. Williams; Rear Admiral Manesh Patel

Casualties USS Isidro, USS Pinta, USS Voyager, and 1 Bolian Destroyer, and 13 Sabre Fighters Lost. Minor damage to the Gilgriese, Hammer, and Sprite.

Romulan Rebel Fleet: 5 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 1 Romulan War Cruiser, 8 Romulan Destroyers, 3 Romulan Bird of Preys, 8 Frigates, 38 Attack Ships  
Commanders: Sural

Casualties: 3 Romulan D7 Cruisers (1 from the Klingon fleet that defected to Romulans), 5 Romulan Destroyers (2 from Klingon fleet that defected to Romulans), 2 Romulan Bird of Prey (1 from Klingon that defected to Romulans), and 2 Frigates destroyed. 3 Attack ships also lost.

Klingons  
KIF IV: 2 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 8 Klingon D7 Cruisers, 12 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 3 Klingon Bird of Preys, 8 Romulan Bird of Preys, 6 Klingon Destroyers, 12 Romulan Destroyers, 5 Klingon D6 Frigates, 100 Fighters  
Commander: Regent Geron Martoc

Casualties: 3 Klingon D7 Cruisers, 2 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 1 Klingon Bird of Prey, 3 Klingon Destroyers, 1 D6 Frigate lost, and 33 Fighters lost. 5 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 3 Romulan Bird of Preys, and 8 Romulan Destroyers defected to other side with several being destroyed by the Klingons as listed in the Allies casulaties above.

Darlok Fleet: 3 Stealth Cruisers, 6 Stealth Light Cruisers, 13 Destroyers, 15 Frigates, 48 Interceptors  
Commander: Commander Mepha

Casualties: 1 Steath Cruiser, 2 Light Cruisers, 6 Destroyers, 10 Frigates and 28 Interceptors lost. 

Description: Despite having a larger number of ships, the loyalty of the forces put together by Geron Martoc was still a problem. Admiral Williams guessed this and decided to send the Romulan Rebels at the Romulan Ships while sending his main force to hit the Darloks. He would drive off the allies and leave the Klingons alone to fight his larger force. This was the first engagement the Federation had with the Darloks and Williams underestimated the Darlok’s numbers as they had excellent cloaking devices and stealth ability. The Darloks moved threw William’s line and hit at his flanks and lured his fleet into a tussle. Geron Martoc decided to take advantage by rushing after William’s capital ships. His fleet was hit by the Romulans who focused on Klingon ships. As expected, 2 Romulan D7s and 3 Romulan destroyers pulled out of the fighting as mutinying Romulans in the crew fought to take control of the ship. Despite their stealth advantages, the Darlok ships did not have the firepower or shield power that the Federation ships maintained. Williams proposed upon the idea of tracking the signatures from the warp engines to track the courses of Darlok stealth ships. The Armstrong class speed also kept up with the Darlok ships once they were fired upon revealing their position. The Darloks began to take damage and fled the battle under the heavy fire of the Federation fleet. Williams arrived just in time to save the Romulan fleet which was being devastated by the Klingons. As the Klingons began to come under fire, more Romulan ships fled the battle or defected. The Klingons, abandoned by their allies, realizing that they were losing their numbers ordered a retreat to Romulus. 

Outcome: The battle was a significant defeat for the Klingons who blamed their Darlok and Romulan allies for the defeat. Romulan crews were no longer reliable and every ship now maintained at least a half of it crew as Klingons. This change cut down the numbers that Martoc could have available and prevented any major defensive action without reinforcements from Qonos which were too far away to be available to stop the siege of Romulus. 

With the victory at Nisbis, the Second Fleet was successful in meeting up with the Romulan Imperial Fleet at Checas. The stronger Romulan Imperial Fleet joined with the Second Fleet and began a push for Romulus. By the end of March, one-third of the Romulan Empire was liberated although Romulan Imperial Forces began to fight both Darlok forces and rebel Romulan groups. The Federation feared a civil war between the different Romulan factions and called for a cease-fire and mediation once Romulus was recaptured, a move currently supported by both Romulan factions.  
The Seventh Fleet began to besiege Romulus by early April while it waited for the Second Fleet and additional Romulans to arrive. Geron Martoc tried to lure the Seventh Fleet away by threatening the flanks but there just was not enough ships available for Martoc to launch a strong offensive and the Romulans in the liberated systems were now arming themselves to fight against the Klingons. Admiral Williams offered to send over numerous captured Klingon civilians if Geron Martoc would surrender Romulus. He refused after discussing the proposal with Tarnum. Tarnum was sending a fleet to relieve Martoc but it was still a month away. Tarnum hoped that Romulus could hold out that long. However, rebel groups began to cut power to Romulus and the defense system. Martoc ordered executions but this failed to stop the insurgency. Williams seeing the advantage launched an attack before the Second Fleet had arrived. Martoc would engage him in the quick Battle of Romulus which saw lite casualties for both sides as Martoc only wanted to fight enough to win the respect of Tarnum. He knew the caused was doomed and pulled his fleet out once the Federation began to overtake him. Williams failed to stop the Klingons from escaping to their new base at Romii, but he had the prize homeworld of the Romulan Star Empire under his control several months ahead of his original plan. He now had to play diplomat to put a Romulan regime in place long enough to keep the Romulan Star Empire together for at least the remainder of the war.  
Geral, the leader of the rebels, was a popular choice but Nagar, head of the Romulan Imperial Fleet had the military on his side. Williams decided to push them into a compromise. They would serve as co-rulers or co-counsels with Nagar focusing on the war with the Klingons and Geral focusing on the fight with the Darloks and rebuilding the Romulan homefront. The Darloks still posed a major threat to the newly liberated Romulan state and the Federation fleet. Most of the Romulan Imperial fleet was closer to the Romulan systems occupied by the Darloks then those occupied by the Klingons so the battle turned to the Darloks by the summer of 2308.  
While the Romulans focused on the Darloks, The Second Fleet and Seventh Fleet combined and pushed Geron Martoc out of Romii by June of 2308 forcing him to flee and reorganize his rump government at Carraya. The Federation captured the Chaltok system with heavy losses to their Romulan allies on July 12, 2308. However, the Klingons had started to reform their lines with heavy reinforcements from the Klingon Empire. The assault slowed and by August of 2308, the Klingons managed to push the Romulans out of Chaltok and recapture the system. The offensive was slowed because the Federation began pulling ships away from the Romulan front to try to stop the Klingons after their victory at Rigel.

The Rigelian Campaign

Tarnum had initially planned to attack the Rigel pocket in the Summer of 2308 but had to push the attack up with fewer ships in April in hopes to draw the Federation’s attention away from the Romulan invasion. The First Fleet was battered but had rebuilt to a degree during the Klingon invasion a year earlier because the Klingons could not tighten the blockade as they had before. The Federation Fourth Fleet had been bolstered by new ships and had grown as a significant threat to break through to the pocket.  
Tarnum wanted to crush this pocket once and for all to free up the blockading Klingon ships for other fronts and to strike a morale blow to the Federation to counter its recent success. However, as stated due to the invasions, Tarnum moved the attack up quicker than planned to help divert Federation attention away from the Romulan front.  
April the 13th, the Klingons entered the pocket near the Cephas system and began to push towards Rigel. The invasion fleet consisted of the renemants of KIF II as well as newly formed Klingon forces. Half the fleet was raw recruits and green. Despite this, the newly rebuilt KIF II managed some major early victories and destroyed two Miranda Class startships early in the fight: the USS Avenger and USS Red Dwarf with only the loss of one Bird of Prey. The Klingons geared up for the offensive on Rigel by May. At this moment, the Fourth Fleet did not have the numbers to directly engaged the Klingons along the front but had started raiding the Klingon occupied areas of KIF I. Tarnum decided to ignore the raids as the focus was on eliminated the First Fleet. May the 10th was set as the official date of the attack

Battle of Rigel  
Date: May 11th, 2308  
Outcome: Klingon Victory

Federation First Fleet: 

5 Heavy Cruisers: USS Bismarck, USS Rigel (damaged going into fight), USS Shran, USS Resolution (Excelsior Class), USS Aenar (Federation Class) (damaged going into fight). 

13 Cruisers: Shariel, Missouri, Hector, Franklin, Crecy, Skygazer, Tolkien, Washington, Titan (Constitution Class), Aurora (Constellation Class), Mosul, Flying Dutchman, Timbuktu (Saladin Class)

5 Light Cruisers: Grozny, Warrant, Jah, Galaga, Universal (Miranda Class)

27 Destroyers: Cheetah, Apollo, Leviathon, Chaucer, Charger (Mayflower Class), Sputnik, Chester, Dependable, Le Redoutable, Celtic, Giver, T’Pol, Kennedy, Charlemagne, Surak (Soyuz Class), Hadrian, Xenophon, Thermopylae, Hanno, Archer (Ptolemy Class), Modus, Higgs Boson, Newton (Oberth Class), Knight, Friendship, Charmer, Sprite (Kelvin Class)  
152 Federation Sabre Class Fighters, 29 Rigelian Merchant Freighters armed with weaponry. One Star Base and planetary defenses.

Casualties: USS Bismark, USS Rigel, USS Shran, USS Aenar, USS Shariel, USS Missouri, USS Franklin (captured), USS Crecy (Captured), USS Washington, USS Aurora (destroyed on May 11 trying to flee battle with fleet), USS Mosul (Crashed on Rigel and evacuated), USS Flying Dutchman (destroyed on May 12 trying to reach Federation lines), USS Grozny, USS Galaga, USS Warrant (Captured), USS Cheetah, USS Chaucer (captured), USS Charger, USS Sputnik (crashed onto Rigel and evacuated), USS Chester, USS Dependable (captured), USS Le Redoutable, USS Giver (Captured), USS T’Pol (crashed into Rigel and evacuated), USS Kennedy (destroyed on May 13 trying to reach Federation lines), USS Surak, USS Xenophon (destroyed on May 12 trying to reach Federation lines), USS Thermopylae (missing, never found), USS Hanno (destroyed on May 11 near Ceta Alpha II trying to flee), USS Modus, USS Higgs Boson (crashed on a moon of Rigel and evacuated), USS Knight, USS Charmer, USS Sprite (captured), all 152 Federation Fighters destroyed or captured, all 29 Freights captured, crashed onto planet, or destroyed. Starbase captured. Around 10,000 Star Fleet personnel plus 3 million Rigelian civilians and soldiers killed during battle and seizure of planet.

Ships that made it back to Federation lines: USS Resolution, USS Tolkien, USS Titan, USS Timbuktu, USS Jah, USS Universal, USS Leviathon, USS Apollo, USS Celtic, USS T’Pol, USS Charlemagne, USS Hadrian, USS Archer, USS Newton, and USS Friendship. 

Commander: Vice Admiral Ryman and Rear Admiral Mark Riker

Klingon Invasion Force, KIF I + KIF II: 8 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 16 D7 Cruisers, 22 Bird of Preys, 29 Destroyers, 17 D6 Frigates, 18 D5 Frigates, 200 Fighters, 30 Bombers

Commanders: Emperor Tarnum, General Kala Harot, General Larr

Casualties: 1 Ktinga Battle Cruiser, 2 D7 Cruisers, 8 Bird of Preys, 7 Destroyers, 3 D6 Frigates, 4 D5 Frigates, 130 Fighters and 5 Bombers lost. Around 100,000 Klingon deaths on space battle, battle for starbase and ground combat.

Description: Both fleets were a mere mesh of ships that each side could put together and were not composed of the veteran, elite ships seen along other fronts. The veterans of KIF II made up less than half of the Klingon fleet while the Federation threw everything they had into the battle including Freighters and Science vessels. Almost a quarter of the Cruisers in the Federation fleet were still damaged from previous engagements. By now the Kelvin and Ptolemy class starships were classified as outdated by the Federation and often performed poorly in fights due to their slower speeds. The Federation’s main hope was their flagship the Bismarck which had been fully repaired at this point. The Bismarck had been one of the most powerful and well-known Excelsior class star ships going into the war and was still a major player. It can outfly and outgun any ship in KIF II. The Resolution and Shran also posed threats. The First Fleet lacked any updated Armstrong Class starships at this point and had suffered a setback with the loss of the Avenger and Red Dwarf. Since the Federation was fighting at Rigel, they hoped to take advantage of the guns and defenses in their dockyards.  
Tarnum knew the system was heavily fortified but had a plan to engage the Federation. He would keep their ships bottled up in the dockyard and spacedocks to prevent them from forming lines. The Federation had kept their ships close to the protection of Rigel to avoid casualties during the siege. Tarnum, had the numbers, but not the superiority he had hoped for and could have had in the summer when the offensive was truly expected. Tarnum did call in some ships from General Larr and KIF I hoping that the Federation would not notice the weakening of the Klingon front lines. This move would be very important as it brought more veterans to Tarnum’s attack plus the input of General Larr.  
The Klingons began their attack in the morning of May 11th by entering the system with the full fleet, the Ktinga Cruisers in front. They de-cloaked before entering into range of the Federation defenses knowing that their signatures were already likely noticed. They focused the early fire on the Starbase and the dockyards, hoping to knock out escape routes and the entrances so that ships could not enter the battle. One of the dockyards on the starbase was hit trapping the USS Franklin, USS Crecy, USS Warrant, USS Chaucer, USS Giver, and USS Sprite inside the starbase effectively eliminating these ships from the fight. The Bismarck came out in full force followed by the USS Shran, USS Galaga, USS Charger, and USS Le Redoubtable in escort. Its escorts outside of the Shran took heavy fire. Three Ktinga Cruisers opened fire on the Bismarck but it recovered and knocked out one of the Ktinga Battlecruisers. The Bismarck then destroyed two Klingon destroyers before taking such a beaten it began to retreat to docks. The Klingon Bombers came out swiftly and hit the Bismarck knocking out the impulse engines. The Bismarck stood adrift and began to take fire from the entire Klingon fleet destroying the ship and taking the life of Vice Admiral Ryman with it. The loss of the USS Bismarck disillusioned the First Fleet. The USS Shran also took heavy fire and was only saved by the intervention of the Rigel, Shariel, Missouri, and Hector which engaged the Klingon cruisers with other ships flanking them. Rigelian freighters flew towards the center of the Klingon fleet but their slow movement often caused them to bottle up other Federation ships trying to get out of the docks. The Klingon fleet annihilated one of the docks with fire from Bird of Preys and Destroyers taking the USS Washington, USS Grozny, 3 Soyuz Class starships, and 5 Rigelian Freighters with it. Several Federation ships began to try to run by now realizing that the fall of Rigel was immenent. The battle began to turn into a route. Rear Admiral Mark Riker pulled the USS Resolution out of the fight and escaped with the Tolkien, Titan, Jah, Hadrian, and Friendship to the Fourth Fleet in a 2-day campaign that saw the loss of the USS Aurora, USS Kennedy, and USS Xenophon who never made it to the Fourth Fleet’s lines. Several ships intentionally plummeted to the planetary surface of Rigel to save the lives of their crew. Over half of First Fleet was either bottled in the Starbase or the surrounded space docks by design of the Klingons. Everything had gone according to plan for Tarnum. Many of the straggling ships either surrendered or fled in every direction. The Klingons began a search and destroy campaign with heavy assistance from KIF I. Despite this, around fifteen ships did make it back to Federation space. 

The loss of Rigel was followed up by some minor offensives against the Fourth Fleet but newly made Vice Admiral John Harriman proved to be efficient in slowing the offensive. Tarnum didn’t want to waste anymore ships and had no plan for a real offensive into Federation space; he planned to keep the status quo, for the time being, on the Federation front. He needed ships along the Romulan front as news had reached him of the fall of Romulus and the reforming of the Romulan Star Empire. Tarnum correctly guessed that the Darloks would not be able to hold the Allied offensive and that KIF IV was in shambles. KIF III was also under threat of being flanked which would have put Qonos itself in danger. Tarnum took half of the fleet used in Rigel and left for Qonos with the goal of raising a relief fleet for the Romulan front. Most of the fleet used at Rigel would participate in the August offensive to retake Chaltok system from the Romulans.

The Elerian-Psilon offensive

The Elerians had brought in more ships to the Cardassian front by July of 2308. Their force was also bolstered by the arrival of a Psilon expedition fleet. The Elerian commander, Sheba Trivil, wanted to launch another attack on the Klingons. They chose to attack the former Cardassian world of Brimel. The attack was made up of two Elerian carrier groups that were composed of over 30 star ships and 100 interceptors in addition to a Psilon fleet of 15 ships. The Cardassians were critical of this attack not wanting their allies to waste their ships needed for the defense of Cardassian space.  
The attack on Brimel was a disaster as the Klingon’s brought in ships from Bajor and ran them off with superior numbers destroying one of the Elerian carrier and 15 ships. The Klingons pushed forward and were met by Cardassian ships which ambushed them and pushed them back towards Brimel. The Klingons lost 2 D7 Cruisers and 10 Destroyers in the ambush almost making up for the losses to Cardassia’s allies. The allies developed a new strategy based on the accidental success they had in this battle. The Elerians would continue their raids into the Klingon lines and hit valued targets to drive the Klingon fleet to action and then fall back luring the Klingons into ambushes by the Cardassian fleet who had by now bought totally into Gul Lobum’s destroyer strategy of overwhelming larger Klingon Capital ships with massive numbers of Cardassian Destroyers. The Klingon fleet began to be driven back slowly along the Cardassian border but still held onto Bajor and some of the surrounding systems allowing the Klingon Force to remain as threat to Cardassia. 

The situation as of Fall 2308

The Klingons appeared to be losing the war by this point in time. They had the big victory in Rigel but this was overshadowed by the liberation and loss of 2/3 of the Romulan Star Empire. The lines on the Cardassian front were getting very thin and Elerian raids were exposing the Klingon’s weakness. The Tzenkethi and Mrrshan rebellions were picking up steam. Admiral Jason Bekar decided to appoint Jon E. Williams to an advisory position to manage the conflict. Jon E. Williams left Manesh Patel in charge of the Romulan Front and decided to pull part of the fleet out to focus on an offensive for Rigel. This, however, did not progress in 2308 as the Sakkara Empire attacked the Federation started a war on the other side of the Federation. As a part of a mutual defense pact the Alkari Empire declared war on the Sakkra to assist the Federation and provided tremendous help in the early part of the war. Rear Admiral Timothy Tompson, the commander of the USS Monitor and a former commander on the USS Organia, was sent to command the Sakkara front. The USS Monitor formed up with some older ships and science/escort ships in the area in what became known as 8th Fleet. 

The Federation Organization was as follows by 2308:

Second Fleet – Vice Admiral Manish Patel located in Romulan Space on Romulan Front  
Third Fleet – Rear Admiral Sulu located in Federation space along the Orion Front  
Fourth Fleet – Vice Admiral John Harriman, located on Rigel Front in Federation Space  
Sixth Fleet – Admiral Bisa Wisol, Located near Earth and Vulcan as a defensive fleet.  
Seventh Fleet – Admiral Jon E. Williams, located on the Rigel Front forming up for an attack  
Eighth Fleet – Rear Admiral Timothy Thompson Located on the Sakkra Border but Headquartered out of Trilar.

Klingon Command Organization:

KIF I: General Larr – Located in Federation space near Rigel  
KIF II: General Kala Harot – Located in Federation space near Rigel  
KIF III: General Jogam Kerish – Located in Federation\Orion Space  
KIF IV: General Geron Martoc – Located near Chaltok System in Romulan Occupied space  
KIF V: General Chang – Located on the Cardassian Front  
General Rarl Worf – Commander of Tzenkethi Front  
General Hag Madon – Commander of Bulrathi-Mrrshan Occupation Front

The Sakkra Invasion

On August 10, 2308, the Sakkra Empire declared war on the Federation to take advantage of the Federation resources already tied fighting the Klingons. The Federation systems located near the Sakkra Empire were very sparsely settled and newly-explored. However, the Sakkara were a greater threat to both Trilar and the Alkarian Empire. Trilar was still a considerable distance and had a large Federation buffer between it and the Sakkra Empire but the Trilarians still feared the damage that the Sakkra could cause to the region and the Allied Economy/War Effort. The Federation knew they had to defend against the Sakkra, mostly to keep them from overrunning their allies the Alkari. The general strategy for this front presented by Admiral Jason Bekar and Admiral James T. Kirk was to maintain the front and keep the Sakkra bogged up long enough to the defeat of the Klingons. Once the Klingons were defeated, the Federation could bring its full resources to bear against the Sakkra and defeat them. Admiral Jon E. Williams recommended newly-made vice Admiral Timothy Thompson, the commander of the USS Monitor, to command the front. This was signed off by StarFleet and the USS Monitor was redeployed with some smaller ships to the front to engage the Sakkra. The fleet was too small to provide a true challenge to the Sakkra but the Federation had also received a pledge of ships from the Trilarians and Psilons.  
The early Sakkra invasions had been slowed by Federation stalling attempts. Starbases proved effective against Sakkra ships and took a toll in early fights. Planetary ground fighting contributed heavily to hold the Sakkra back as Federation troops fought to delay more than to win and the Sakkra found it hard to uproot them from their worlds. The early intervention of the Alkari fleet also destablished the Sakkra but by the end of August, the Sakkra had total leeway to move on their front. By October, the newly formed Eighth (8th) Fleet under Timothy Thompson arrived on the front with small allied contigents from the Psilon Alliance and Trilarian Systems. Timothy’s fleet was lacking of any major firepower, made up of older ships and other vessels could be put together on the fly. The bulk of his fleet was older Kelvin, Mayflower, and Soyuz class starships. The USS Monitor was the only Excelsior class at his disposal. He began to coordinate with the Alkari on how to stop the Sakkra and decided they needed to engage them to prevent the fall of their allies. The Sakkra had started to push deep into Alkari space during October and had mostly stayed content to hold the border systems of the Federation and continue the fight there. Timothy ordered the Eighth Fleet and Allied units into Alkari space to engage the Sakkra in a joint operation near the Phesis System.

Battle of Phesis  
Date: November 2, 2308  
Outcome: Slight Allied Victory

Sakkra Invasion Force: 5 Sakkra Battleships, 25 Sakkra Destroyers, 31 Sakkra Cutters, and 84 Interceptors plus supporting Attack Transport ships.  
Commander: Slom Hisza

Casualties: 3 Sakkra Battleships, 18 Sakkra Destroyers, 19 Sakkra Cutters, and 36 Interceptors lost. Transport fleet decimated causing over 100,000 Sakkra Casualties.

Allied Forces:

Alkarian Defense Force: 5 Alkari Cruisers, 15 Alkari Destroyers, 21 Frigates, 3 Scout Ships, 68 Alkari Fighters, 1 Starbase

Federation Eight Fleet: USS Monitor (Excelsior Class), USS Bayern (Constitution Class), USS Essex (Constitution Class), USS Stamford (Miranda Class), USS Jasper (Soyuz Class), USS Phimi (Soyuz Class), USS Trill (Soyuz Class), USS Susan B. Anthony (Soyuz Class), USS Spencer (Soyuz Class), USS H.G. Wells (Soyuz Class), USS Yangtzhe (Mayflower Class), USS Hopewell (Mayflower Class), USS Discovery (Mayflower Class), USS Phillip (Ptolemy Class), USS Jordan (Ptolemy Class), USS Primid (Kelvin Class), USS Texas (Kelvin Class), USS Kilimanjaro (Kelvin Class), USS Lief Ericson (Oberth Class). 38 Sabre Fighters.  
Commander: Admiral Timothy Thompson (also commanding Psilon and Trilarian reinforcements), Captain Gi Melash (Psilon Commander), Captain Loras Loval Losot (Trilarian Commander)

Allied Ships: 1 Psilon Cruiser, 7 Psilon Destroyers, 20 Psilon Interceptors, 5 Trilarian Destroyers, 5 Trilarian Frigates, 8 Trilarian Fighter crafts. 

Casualties: 3 Alkari Cruisers, 1 Psilon Cruiser, USS Stamford, USS Phimi, USS Susan B. Anthony, USS Discovery, USS Phillip, USS Texas, 3 Psilon Destroyers, 3 Trilarian Destroyers, 8 Alkari Destroyers, 13 Alkari Frigates, 1 Alkari Scout ship, 1 Trilarian Frigate, 5 Sabre Class Fighters, 50 Alkari Fighters, and all 20 Psilon Interceptors lost. Captain Gi Melash killed in the fighting. Around 600 Starfleet personnel lost, 300 Psilons killed, 80 Trilarians, and over 80,000 Alkari killed.

Description: The Allied fleet had 81 Starships against 61 Sakkra ships but the Sakkra fleet had the overwhelming firepower. The Sakkra had 5 powerful battleships to go against an allied force of 1 heavy cruiser (USS Monitor) and 8 standard Cruisers plus one light cruiser (USS Stamford). The Alkari cruiser was inferior to Sakkra battleships in firepower, only the USS Monitor truly had parity against a Sakkra Battleship although the Stamford, Essex, and Bayern could give a Battleship a lot of trouble due to their speed.  
The Sakkra force had done as they pleased at this point and Sakkra forces had captured 5 Federation systems and 4 Alkarian systems. However, they had taken minor losses, especially to their destroyers, while the Federation had not yet committed to fight until this battle. Timothy rushed into this battle with hope of saving the Alkarian Empire by pushing back the Sakkra and perhaps combining their forces to begin an offensive. However, the Federation resources were limited while the Sakkra had resources to spare. Such an early commitment was a great risk.  
The Sakkra had no real plan of battle, they were to charge at the Alkari defenses and crush them. It appeared that the Sakkra did not consider the Federation and Allied reinforcements at all in the ir general battle plan. This open the door for the Federation to flank the Sakkra but speed would be important and some of the modern Federation ships started to outrun the older Federation and allied ships. The Monitor pelted a Sakkra destroyer in the flank and destroyed it quickly. The Monitor then began to take fire from the Sakkra fleet which turned to meet them. Timothy had boldy out ran his fleet but was saved by the timely arrival of the Essex which took out two more Sakkra Destroyers. The Stamford was not as lucky and took heavy fire from many Sakkra ships. With shields failing, the Stamford was forced out of the fight and abandoned by the crew before a warp core breach. The older ships arrived to meet the Sakkra fleet but by this time the Sakkra had pulled back two Battleships from engaging the Alkari to meet the allied fleet. The Sakkra fleet had knocked out the Alkari starbase in the first wave assault against the Alkari and inflicted heavy damage on the Alkari Defense Fleet so now they had the luxury to send ships against the new Federation attempt to flank the fleet. The Allieds began to trade blows with the Sakkra and both sides began losing destroyers. Timothy had hoped to avoid a battle of attrition and so began to maneuver the Monitor, Essex, and Bayern around the Sakkra fleet and hit the transports. The Federation capitol ships also lured one of the Sakkra Battleships away from the fleet and then inflicted fire from all three cruisers onto the Battleship to destroy it. However, the main fleet was in danger as the Psilon crusier was destroyed (killing Captain Gi Malesh) by the other Sakkra Battleship which now had a destroyer escort that was attempting to knock out the Eighth Fleet. Timothy left the Essex behind to knock out more Sakkra transports while the Monitor and Bayern came at the new Sakkra Battlegroup. The Monitor took heavy damage but also inflicted considerable damage on the Sakkra Battleship. The Bayern with the help of several Soyuz class starships took out most of the destroyer escort leaving the Battleship naked. The Sakkra could not break through and destroy the Federation battlegroup so they rallied around their own capital ships and dared the allies to attack them. The Essex, however, had done the damaged and knocked out several transports along with 2 Destroyers in the rear of the fleet. Unable to capture the Alkari planet, the Sakkra withdrew from the system.

Outcome: Although the Sakkra lost a few more ships then the allies, the Sakkra could replace their losses. The Alkari were knocked out as a fighting force for a while but the Sakkra took enough damage that their assault on the Alkari Empire came to a halt for the course of 2308. The Sakkra instead reinforced their forces in Federation space and hoped to draw Timothy into a battle. This would prove futile as Timothy learned his lesson and knew that by keeping his fleet intact but avoiding fights, he was a continued threat to the Sakkra. The Federation would adopt of strategy of surrendering systems for time and allow the Sakkra to overextend their lines. The Essex and Bayern would make a name for themselves performing various raids into Sakkra space. Admiral Thompson had only these two ships to provide as using the Monitor on raids was risky since it was the top capital ship in the area and the Federation could not offer additional Miranda, Armstrong, Constitution, or Excelsior class starships at the time which were the only ships capable of out-running the Sakkra fleet. 

The Spring Sakkra Offense

Throughout 2308, the Sakkra consolidated their gains and captured 4 additional Federation systems. However, by January 2309, the Sakkra came up with a new strategy of splitting their foes. They began to focus on seizing Federation and Alkari systems along the Federation-Alkari Border. Admiral Thompson continued his strategy of buying time. The Federation dispatched more ships which included 2 more Excelsior Classes, 5 Miranda Class, and Armstrong Class, and 3 Constitution Class starships. Thompson would find his forces tripled but they were not due until March. The Sakkra knew that at some point the Federation would send more reinforcements so they took the systems at a slow pace to maintain their flank to avoid overextending in their supply routes, ambushes from Thompson’s fleet, and to not draw heavy attention to themselves so that the Federation would maintain the bulk of their fleet against the Klingons. However, Thompson took out several lighter Sakkra destroyers and freight conveys with raids by the Essex and Bayern. The two ships became infamous among the Sakkra.  
The Sakkra seized 5 Alkari Systems and 9 Federation systems by the time the reinforcements arrived in March. Lines with the Alkarian Empire had nearly been cut and the Sakkra had already reinforced their invasion fleet and thought about making a second attempt to knock the Alkari out of the war. However, Thompson was ready for the fight. Although the Sakkra had a larger fleet, the Federation had received reinforcements composed of better equipped ships ran by veterans from the fight with the Klingons. Admiral Thompson had been studying the Sakkra moves for quite some time. The Sakkra had been efficient and moved cautiously unlike the Blitzkrieg invasions used by the Klingons. Thompson had a plan to hit the Sakkra fleet and encircle the bulge they had created with their invasions. He tried to work with the Alkari but he could not entirely count on the Alkari fleet. The Alkari could provide little aid so the Allied fleet to engage in this campaign would largely be a Federation effort.

The Battle of Septis Magnus  
Date: April 10-11, 2309  
Outcome: Federation/Allied Victory

Sakkra Invasion Force:  
Commander: General Seron Ssssla

Forces: 8 Sakkra Battleships, 10 Sakkra Pocket Battleships, 38 Destroyers, 20 Frigates, 210 Sakkra Interceptors  
Casualties: 5 Sakkra Battleships, 7 Pocket Battleships, 21 Destroyers, 18 Frigates, and 182 Interceptors lost. General Seron Ssssla killed in the battle.

Federation Eighth Fleet:  
Commander: Admiral Timothy Thompson, Captain Belo Dax (a Trill), and Captain Loras Loval Losot (a Trilarian)

Heavy Cruisers (3): USS Monitor, USS Illustrious, USS Venerable (Excelsior Class)

Cruisers (7): USS Bayern, USS Essex, USS Cushion, USS Omsk, USS Trudgeon (Constitution Class), USS Paradise, USS Hipparchus (Constellation Class)

Light Cruisers (6): USS Litigator, USS Geneva, USS Versailles, USS Typhoon, USS Maklar (Miranda Class), USS Cummings (Armstrong Class)

Destroyers (22): USS Jasper, USS Trill, USS Spencer, USS H.G. Wells, USS Behroozi, USS Meridian (Soyuz Class), USS Yangtzhe Class, USS Hopewell, USS Vision (Mayflower Class), USS Jordan, USS Colossus (Ptolemy Class), USS Primid, USS Kilimanjaro, USS Kinetic (Kelvin Class), 4 Psilon Destroyers, 3 Trilarian Destroyers. 

Frigates (14): 6 Trilarian Frigates, 8 Federation Frigates  
Other ships: 120 Sabre Fighters, 12 Trilarian Fighter-Crafts

Casualties: USS Venerable, USS Bayern, USS Omsk, USS Paradise, USS Geneva, USS Maklar, USS Trill, USS Spencer, USS H.G. Wells, USS Jordan, and USS Kinetic lost in the battle. Also 2 Psilon Destroyers and 1 Trilarian Destroyers lost. 

Description: The Sakkra had the numbers but not all of the Sakkra ships arrived at once into the Septis Magnus system to provide relief. It was only when the Sakkra truly saw it as a major attack that the other ships pulled out from adjacent systems. Thompson was able ambushed two Sakkra Battleships early in the fight and destroyed them. They were heading to the front and did not expect an attack behind the lines. The Eighth Fleet continued the planetary invasion and beamed down ground troops to liberate Septis Magnus IV. Sakkra ships fought delaying actions before the main fleet could arrive. Several Sakkra destroyers were lost in the fighting while a single Federation ship had yet to be lost.  
The Campaign had been ongoing for 8 hours when the Sakkra reinforcements began to trickle into the system. They began to group up but Admiral Thompson ordered an attack before they could come into formation. The Federation often had 3-4 ships per Sakkra ship during the assault. The damage was heavy and finally the Sakkra fleet began to scatter and flee. 

Outcome: The Federation had nearly destroyed the Sakkra attack fleet and now had direct parity on the front with the Sakkra. It was a major victory and haulted the offensive. The Sakkra threat was contained and the need for additional reinforcements by the Federation was no longer urgent. The Federation could turn their focus back to stopping Tarnum and the Klingons. 

Withdrawing and stalemate on the Sakkra front for the remainder of 2309

The victory was decisive. The Sakkra had lost their main fleet and began to pull back. By October of 2309, The Federation had nearly driven the Sakkra entirely out of Federation space. Most of the Alkari Empire that had been conquered by the Sakkra was liberated during this time as well. The Sakkra still held around fifteen Federation systems. The Eighth Fleet did not have enough ground troops to push off the Sakkra and the Sakkra had grouped the remainder of their fleet together in a strong defensive line to hold the front. Neither side could really afford to launch any major offensives that year so mostly raids and small ship to ship action occurred during this time. Admiral Thompson wisely kept most of his older and slower ships out of these raids and fights preferring to use his speedy starships like the Miranda class ships. These engagements favored the quicker and more powerful Federation ships, especially the Miranda class starships. The Sakkra lost valuable destroyers and frigates in these actions and were constantly kept off guard by the raids. In December of 2309, the Sakkra abandoned three more systems to the Federation. The Morale of the Sakkra Empire became very low and the entry into war was starting to be questioned despite the early victories. The Sakkra Emperor and his council decided it would now become their goal to hold the occupied systems and use them for diplomacy with the Federation. 2310 would be a year of negotiations that would fail as the Federation would demand a return to status quo. 

Situation with the Klingons in 2309

The winter of 2308-2309 was a time of build-up by both the Federation and Klingon Empire. The Klingons were dealing with more terrorist activity in their occupied systems, especially in Mrrshan and Tzenkethi space. Klingon morale was starting to drain and Tarnum’s commanders worried that the Allies were building up to overwhelm them. The enemies of the Klingon Empire, they argued, were too many. Tarnum needed some victories and decided that the area that was of the most concern was the Romulan Front. Some of the better ships had been re-deployed to that region to stop a continued Federation-Allied offensive that never materialized. The Allied fleets in the regions were continually being replaced by the Romulans and their ships, which Tarnum saw as inferior, to the Federation forces. Tarnum decided that this front was more advantageous than his other previous goal of trying to occupy Cardassia. Tarnum at this point had also given up on invasions of the Federation as he considered the Federation to be too strong to defeat for the moment.  
The Federation had been busy supplying their Sakkra front and were unable to plan any offensives before the summer of 2309. An Ambassador class prototype was in development and Starfleet believed this ship could be a game changer in the conflict. Upgraded weapons for the Constellation, Excelsior, Miranda, and Armstrong classes were also in the works. The Constellation class would begin to take on more development time and become more of a force in the fleet. The Federation also stopped production of Soyuz, Ptolemy, and Mayflower class starships considering this class to be outdated and a waste of resources. The biggest step for the Federation would come on April 8, 2309 when both Bolarius and Trilar were admitted with their sister worlds into the Federation as full members. Their entry would jump-start the Federation economy and provide additional manpower to Starfleet in the long term. Granted, both Bolarius and Trilar had been allies of the Federation from the start, but full membership created greater coordination of resources.

The Romulan Campaign of 2309

Tarnum listed out the campaign strategy with his generals as follows. Step one was to engage and defeat threatening Allied fleet. Step two was to seize the important Romulan base of Romii and surrounding systems to push line forward. Step three was to drive to Darlok space and to meet up with Darlok fleet. Step four was for a combined Darlok-Klingon fleet to assault Romulus. Tarnum grouped a fleet of newly built ships as well as the renemants of the Klingon-Romulan Fleet of KIF IV into a new fleet labeled as KIF VI. A KIF IV force still existed, but it was mostly the defensive wing of the fleet to follow in reserve. General Uras Goroyl was chosen to head up the invasion. KIF IV and KIF VI would occupy Romulus space forming two fronts in the region. The assault was initially to start in June, however, the Romulans had started to push against KIF IV providing Tarnum with an opportunity for his fleet to ambush the Romulan wing.

Battle of Hilj  
Date: May 13, 2309  
Outcome: Decisive Klingon Victory

Klingon Forces:

KIF IV (Defensive Force): 1 Ktinga Battlecruiser, 5 D7 Cruisers, 10 Destroyers, 6 D9 Frigates, 20 Fighters.  
Commander: General Ja Ug directed by Geron Martoc from force base at Chaltok III.

Casualties: 2 D7 Cruisers, 6 Destroyers, 3 D9 Frigates, and all 20 Fighters lost.

KIF VI (Offensive Force): 8 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 16 D7 Cruisers, 20 Bird of Preys, 31 Destroyers, 11 D9 Frigates, 200 Fighters, 30 Bombers  
Commander: Emperor Tarnum, General Uras Goroyl directed by Tarnum as Fleet Commander

Casualties: 1 D7 Cruiser, 1 Bird of Prey, 1 D9 Frigate, and 13 Fighters lost. 

Allied Forces:

Romulan 3rd Fleet: 10 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 12 Romulan War Cruisers, 30 Destroyers, 12 Frigates, 80 Romulan Attack Fighters.  
Commander: Galan Lurronto 

Casualties: 9 D7 Cruisers, 8 War Cruisers, 22 Destroyers, all 12 Frigates, and 71 Attack Fighters lost.

Description: The Romulan 3rd Fleet was composed of ships from the restored Romulan Fleet. The Romulans had slowly began taking back their systems and rebuilding their forces while a fleet made up of both Romulan and Federation ships held the front. The 3rd Fleet had aggressively driven the Klingons out of three systems and decided to follow up with more attacks. Galan Lurronto was aggressive and believed that he could be the hero that turned the Klingon flank. The apparently weakness became noticeable to Tarnum while he was building up for his campaign. With a large fleet nearly ready for an offensive, Tarnum had an opportunity to crush a sizeable portion of a Romulan fleet and weaken the Allied front. Tarnum would utilize his numbers to crush the overextended and out of formation Romulan Third Fleet. The Romulans went after a KIF IV fleet under Ja Ug which was based in the Romulan corridor of systems that bordered Meklar Space and Bulrathi space. This corner would have opened the door for a Romulan invasion of the Bulrathi Empire. KIF IV’s fleet could not stop the Romulans and began to fall back as ordered by Tarnum. The Romulans appeared to have broken the flank with the attack and several days into the offensive, Galan Lurronto bragged that he could cut the supplies from Chaltok and force the Klingons out of Romulan space.  
Ja Ug decided to make the stand at a fortified system called Hilj which was close to Chaltok and the supply routes for KIF IV. The Klingons held out for a couple of hours taking heavy damage. The time bought allowed KIF V to arrive and spring the ambush. KIF VI’s numbers won the day despite Romulan courage. 

Outcome: The Klingons destroyed nearly the entire Romulan fleet making it one of the most lop-sided battles in the war. It was hailed as a major Klingon victory and moral boost for the Klingons and a total disaster for the Allies along the Romulan Front who were now put on the defensive.

Klingon Offensive of 2309

With the victory, the Romulan Front was in disarray. Manesh Patel sent a request to Star Fleet that the Second Fleet pull away from the front and re-group deeper into Romulan space as the Fleet was now vulnerable to being flanked and cut-off from Romulus by the Klingons. Starfleet approved this maneuver but the Romulans protested surrendering their space to the Klingons. Tarnum was quick with his offensive and the Federation only escaped encirclement after a couple of small engagements at Selta before the Second Fleet rallied at Romii. The Romulans had wanted to stay and fight but seeing their Federation allies flee, they were forced to follow. The Romulans felt humiliated having to rely on the Federation for defense, but at this point in the war, the Romulans were still not strong enough to stand up to the Klingons. Despite this, a large Romulan force near Darlok space was about to pull a victory that would stop the offensive for good.  
Nagar’s main imperial fleet had pulled back from the Klingons in fear of being flanked as well, but a majority of the fleet was still aligned along the Darlok border. Nagar had wanted to destroy the Darlok fleet for good and gain a political victory for himself. He had selfishly delayed the deployment of some of his best ships to the Klingon front, relying on Romulan rebel and Federation ships to hold that area. Nagar felt that his objective was rushed once the Klingons launched their offensive. Initially Nagar wanted to rally his fleet to stop the Klingons but knew that it was folly and that he could not arrive in time to stop the offensive. Instead he orchestrated an invasion of the Darloks wisely guessing that one of Tarnum’s objectives would be to meet-up with the Darlok fleet. He advised the plan to both Geral and Manesh Patel who gave it their blessing although scolding Nagar for not initially deploying some of his ships to the front. The selfish move by Nagar may have benefited the allies as the Romulan ships he didn’t deploy would have likely not been a factor in stopping the Klingon assault anyways. 

The Battle of Chemmora  
Date: July 18, 2309  
Outcome: Romulan Decisive Victory

Romulan Imperial Fleet renemant: 5 Romulan Cruisers, 3 Romulan D7 Cruisers, 2 Romulan War Cruisers, 10 Destroyers, 12 Frigates, 45 Attack ships. Also, two Federation ships USS Utah (Constitution Class) and USS Firefly (Miranda Class) assisted the Romulan fleet.  
Commander: Nagar, Captain Boron Bison commanded two Federation ships. 

Darlok Battle Fleet: 7 Stealth Cruisers, 10 Stealth Light Cruisers, 18 Destroyers, 16 Frigates, 56 Interceptors. 2 Starbases at each planet.  
Commander: Commander Mepha, Commander Lutcon

Description: The Romulan Imperial Fleet was made up of hardened veterans that had fought in the previous war with the Darloks and knew how to defeat them. The Darlok fleet was still battered from their battles with the Federation Second and Seventh Fleets during the initial Federation campaign for Romulus. The Romulans were better equipped and more professional but the Darloks did have high morale as many Darloks felt they were defending their home systems from Romulan domination in the future. Commander Mepha was a capable commander so Nagar didn’t want to take any chances. He initially asked for Federation ships but only received two reserve ships as the Federation force was concerned with the Klingons. Manesh Patel though it was worth risking two reserve ships far from the lines to aid the Romulans. The two fleets met at the Darlok system of Chemmora which was an important mining and manufacturing center for the Darlok Coalition.  
The Romulan outcome was in doubt from the start but Nagar had more Cruisers to utilize, especially with the USS Utah joining the fleet. D7s were beginning to show age but were still effective against Darlok cruisers. The War Cruiser was on par with a Darlok Light Cruiser but had a significantly stronger advantage when equipped with the powerful Romulan Distrupter cannons. The Romulans had started research work into disrupters before the war and Nagar had continued this work after the liberation of Romulus. The Disrupter was added to the two War Cruisers only to be used as a prototype.  
The Darloks preferred scatter attacks so the Romulans lumped their fleet into one column in a classic-style cruiser attack. The Darloks ships began to take pot shots at the Romulans but did little damage as the Romulan force made its way closer to the first Darlok planet. Darlok starbases were relatively weak and Nagar wanted to try out his disrupters early to see their effectiveness. The Disrupters bypassed the Darlok shields and cut holes into the starbase. Seeing the devastation of the Romulan Disrupters, the Darlok fleet began a full attack on the Romulan rear as a result. Nagar was stunned at how effective the disrupters performed on the Starbase and ordered the two war cruisers forward to engage the Darlok fleet while several of his D7s continued their fire on the starbase. The USS Utah engaged a Darlok Cruiser in a heavy fight that nearly destroyed both craft. The Utah had to pull into the Romulan center for repair while the Darlok Cruiser began to retreat but was hit and destroyed by two Romulan Destroyers. The Disrupters cut into another Darlok Cruiser destroying it. The Darlok focused their lighter craft against the War Cruisers forcing the Romulans to deploy ships to defend the “mobile disrupter canons” as Nagar called them. The Romulan and Darlok losses began to mount as they lost Destroyers and Frigates to the fire of capital ships. The War Cruisers succeeded in taking out two more Darlok Light Stealth Cruisers before one of the Romulan Cruisers exploded from the combined damage that had occurred over time from multiple Darlok attacks. The USS Firefly came in to save the other and destroyed a couple of Darlok Destroyers with torpedos. The Darlok fleet pulled back to repair and regroup while the Romulan fleet, despite taking damage, continued to the other planet and took out its starbase with fire from the surviving disrupter as well as Romulan cruisers. With the planetary defenses down, the Romulans began bombing military and industrial targets on both planets forcing the Darlok fleet into a heavy suicidal attack against the Romulans to save their planet. The Romulans formed their ships up and began to use numbers and firepowers to mow down the Darlok fleet which came at them with no real tactics. Commander Mepha was killed when his Cruiser was destroyed in an early attack by several Romulan ships. The Romulans lost two of their large Cruisers and their last War Cruiser in the attack but by now the numbers had started to favor the Romulans as the Darlok had taken heavy losses. The USS Utah made some significant repairs and performed effectively against the Darlok in these assaults. The Romulan Cruisers and two Federation ships were far superior to any Darlok ship except the Cruisers. With most the Darlok Cruisers destroyed, the Romulans began to cut down the Darlok ships with superior firepower and by maintaining their formations. The Romulans had won the battle by forcing the Darlok into a quick attack with little planning. The Darlok ships often came right at Romulan formations allowing 3-4 Romulan Cruisers to bring fire onto one Darlok Cruiser destroying it before it could really do any damage. The suicidal assault ruined the Darlok Coalition. The Romulans knocked some more targets out but did not choose to invade the planet under encouragement from the Federation, did not hit the civilian targets. The Romulan Fleet pulled out of Chemmora satisfied that they completed two major objectives: Damaging Darlok war industry and Destroying the Darlok Fleet. 

Outcome: Chemmora was the end of the Darloks. They lost ship yards, mining, and other manufacturing facilities of importance. Although additional Darlok shipyards were located at the Darlok homeworld of Nazin, it would take time to rebuild their fleet with the limited resources at hand. The ability for the Darlok to assault Romulan territories was estinquished for the time being. This ruined Klingon strategy as the Darlok fleet was no longer available to assist them in assaulting Romulus. 

Klingon 2309 invasion of Romulus stalls

The news of Chemmora was not well taken by Tarnum who declared the Darlok to be officially defeated. His words to his commanders was that he could not control the Romulan Star Empire but he still thought Romulus would be a major morale boost to the Empire and weaken the Romulans for years if it could be taken again. The Klingons had succeeded in late July of forcing the allies to retreat out of Romii and seized the planet throughout August after ground invasions.  
The Klingons still planned an assault on Romulus. The allies were worried and fortified Romulus heavily. The Klingon moral grew and they expected victory as there was no major fortified point between the Klingon lines and Romulus. However, the Klingons were diverted in August 2309 by a major Meklar invasion. The Klingons defeated the Meklar with casualties during the Messela Campaigns. The Klingons used ambush maneuvers the Meklar were not familiar with and cut their ships down with mass assaults from numerous Klingon ships. Often 3-4 ships were engaging one Meklar cruiser. Despite this the Meklar had strong ships and unusual weapons which caused Klingon casualties. Between the casualties and the loss of the Darlok fleet, Tarnum now knew that an assault on Romulus would be unsuccessful. He performed some raids throughout September of 2309 hoping to lure the Second Fleet or the Romulans into a fight but this failed as both Allied fleets stayed in their lines. Not wanting to risk his fleet, Tarnum called off the operation content to fortify Romii. The situation was growing worse along the Cardassian front and in Tzenkethi space and the Klingons began to adjust their fleets moving KIF VI units into KIF III and KIF IV and disbanding the fleet. KIV III ships were pushed into KIF II and ships from KIF II and I were moved to the Cardassian front to join KIF V in a clever reshuffling of the Klingon forces to provide aid and not allow a breakdown of lines anywhere across Klingon space. This also saved times as ships did not have to travel from one side of the Empire to the other. 

Situation in Fall of 2309

The strategic situation was not favoring the Klingons at this point in the war but they were not beaten. In fact, the Romulan offensive had succeeded in pushing the Allied lines further away from Klingon space and almost a half of the Romulan Star Empire was once again under Klingon control. The Meklar invasion had created a hole as the Klingons could not hope to hold the allies and defend against Meklar invasions. The Meklar rarely engaged in diplomacy and were notorious for attacking anyone at any moment without warning. The Meklar had been watching the events of the war and the change of hands in systems and it was unclear whether their invasions were motivated by desires to seize Romulan systems or their desire to destroy the Klingon fleet near their borders out of fear of the Klingon buildup. Geron Martoc was given the renemants of KIF VI which were merge into KIF IV. Geron Martoc complained that the front was too large to defend and he should pull back. Mrrshan rebels liberated Fieras their home system by November 2309. The Klingons just did not have the forces to hold them back. Overextension was becoming a major problem and rebellions were growing in the systems that the Klingons had conquered. Geron Martoc wanted a smaller front that allowed him the flexibility to address the rebellions with Bulrathi and Mrrshan as well as be closer to KIF III to be able to engage in joint operations. Tarnum eventually capitulated to Geron Martoc’s demands and the Klingons withdrew, the following year, from Romii and most of the Klingon gains from their previous offensive in 2309.  
The Tzenkethi front was not going well as the rebels had retaken about a third of their former Empire. Their fleets were still relatively small but Rarl Worf could not get them to engage and always faced attacks on his supply routes when he deployed his fleet out of the capitol system into Tzenkethi rebel controlled space. The rebels slowly pushed the Klingons back as the Klingons had no effective means to stop the rebels. There were simply not enough Klingon ships or troops in the area to address the growing threat. The Klingons had begun working on a secret weapon that would later become the Vor’cha class crusiers. Tarnum hoped that the Klingons could match the Federation in battle with this new ship and pushed resources into the research.  
The Cardassian Union had rebuilt its fleet and was ready for an offensive by late 2309. The Cardassians retook 10 systems from October to December in 2309 with little resistance by the Klingons. These systems were close to Tzenkethi space and the Klingons worried that this front was on the verge of collapse. The Klingons still held Bajor and the Cardassian systems near Bajoran and Gorn space. However, General Chang had given up over half of the Cardassian systems they had in the initial invasion. Most of these systems held little strategic value but the Cardassian line was moving closer to the already unstable Tzenkethi region. This movement by the Cardassians as well as the Cardassian-Elerian fleet build-up became a growing concern to Tarnum and his commanders.  
On October 10 of 2309, the Breen Confederacy join the war as an effort to develop a stronger alliance with the Cardassians and Elerians. The Breen were in a heavy rivalry/cold war with the Tholian Assembly over a small chain of mineral rich star systems in the Tectic Nebula. The Breen hoped to push for a three-pact alliance with the Cardassians and Elerians to fiend off their Tholian rivals. To support this pact, the Breen decided to assist their other two allies in the war against the Klingons and sent a sizable fleet to show their loyalty. The Breen force consisted of 8 Cruisers and 20 Destroyers. The Breen did not use smaller craft in their fleet but rather focused on stronger ships armed with Dampner weapons. With this arsenal of new ships, the Elerian leaders pushed for the allies to attack Bajor. The Allied fleet also rallied Gnolam and Psilon ships in the region and merged into a very large force that was ready to take on General Chang. The Breen ships were in the region and ready to fight by January of 2310. However, the Federation warned against an offensive and cited that they had their own plans to deal with the Klingons in an offensive scheduled for March. The Psilon and Gnolams refused to participate in the assault, frustrating the Elerians. The offensive would be delayed to coincide with the Federation offensive in March.

The Tzenkethi Offensive

The Federation had planned their big offensive for March of 2310. The Federation had gathered the Seventh Fleet and reinforced it. Two Ambassador class starships just released were also placed into the Fleet. Admiral Jon E. Williams wanted to lead his fleet personally on an attack along the Klingon/Gorn border that would drive into Tzenkethi space and surrounded the Klingon forces between his lines and the Cardassians. The Cardassians and the other allies along that front would also launch assaults to keep the Klingons bogged down. William’s plan included invasions of Gorn systems and the liberation of Rigel. It was a bold offensive that mirrored Tarnum’s earlier tactics of surrounding enemy fleets and destroying them piecemeal. It also had the goal of liberating the Tzenkethi and bringing them back into the fight.  
Jon E. Williams wanted the Second Fleet along the Romulan Empire to make minor attacks with the Fourth Fleet into Orion space to keep the Klingons busy on that front and prevent them from reinforcing against his main attack. This offensive, if successful, according to Starfleet should break the Klingons and perhaps push them to surrender. It would also push the front back to Klingon space for the first time since the opening of the conflict.  
The date was set for March 20, 2310 but the Allies headed up by Cardassia could not wait for the date. Williams decided it maybe better for them to make the first move and provide diversion to the Klingons. The Cardassians wanted the Klingons out of Bajor and decided to launch a full assault which ended in failure of the First Battle of Bajor.

First Battle of Bajor  
Date: March 18, 2310  
Outcome: Narrow Klingon Victory

Klingon-Bajoran Force: 8 Ktinga Cruisers, 19 D7 Cruisers, 34 Destroyers, 8 Bird of Preys, 12 D9 Frigates, 200 Fighters. 10 Bajoran Sailships (Destroyer level), 80 Bajoran Assault Vessels, 213 small commercial or private Bajoran craft armed to fight. 200 Photon Missiles armed on homeworld. One Starbase.  
Commander: General Chang, Taylun Shakar – Bajoran Leader  
Casualties: 6 Ktinga Battlecruisers lost, 1 other heavily damaged, 15 D7 Cruisers lost or damaged beyond repair, 16 Destroyers lost, 2 Bird of Preys lost, 8 D9 Frigates lost, 130 of the 200 Fighters lost. Klingon casualties over 4000. 4 Bajoran Sailships lost, 61 Bajoran Assault Vessels and over 120 other Bajoran Ships lost. Over 181 of the 200 Photon Missiles used in the fight. Bajoran losses from the fighting range around 27,000 from ship action, minor planetary invasion, and planetary bombing.

Allied Forces:

Cardassians: 6 Cruisers, 48 Destroyers, 10 Frigates, 91 Attack Ships  
Commander: Legate Lobum, Gul Dumar Tola  
Casualties: 3 Cruisers, 29 Destroyers, 6 Frigates, and 35 Attack ships lost. Gul Dumar Tola died in the fight. Over 10,000 Cardassian depths, 8000 of which came from a small planetary invasion/raid.

Elerians: 2 Carriers, 5 Cruisers, 18 Destroyers, 11 Frigates, 300 Interceptors, 12 Bombers  
Commander: Duchess Meladonie, Countess Leowth  
Casualties: 1 Carrier, 2 Cruisers, 7 Destroyers, 6 Frigates, 183 Interceptors, and all 12 Bombers lost in the fight. Over 1000 Elerian casualties. 

Gnolams: 3 Destroyers and 2 Frigates under command of Captain Galscon  
Casualties: 1 Destroyer and 1 Frigate lost.

Psilons: 2 Cruisers, 12 Destroyers, 22 Frigates, 31 Fighters, 3 Ferengi Frigates  
Commander: Psi Gomo  
Casualties: Both Cruisers, 6 Destroyers, 12 Frigates, and all 31 Fighters lost. Also 1 Ferengi ship destroyed. 

Breen: 7 Cruisers, 14 Destroyers  
Commander: Thot Guya  
Casualties: 5 Cruisers and 8 Destroyers lost. Most of the rest of the fleet would be inactive for months doing repairs.

Description: The one advantage that General Chang had was that his forces were united under one command and strategy. The allied command and strategy was chaotic. The Cardassians planned to overwhelm with Destroyers as previous tactic. The Elerians deployed light craft from their Carriers. The Breen and Psilons preferred the classic capitol ship approach. The fleets engaged the Klingons as such using each of their own strategy. The Klingons had heavy support from the Bajorans who obeyed the Klingon general strategy and fought hard for their homeworld and freedom. Bajor was armed with Photon Missiles that would be launched at the Allied Capital ships and inflict heavy damage.  
The Elerians had deployed two carrier groups with several smaller ships to the fight. The Elerians wanted to hit the Klingon capital ships. The Cardassians, too, planned to hit at the main fleet but also hoped to land ground troops on Bajor early in the conflict to re-start the occupation. The other Allied Fleets were told to focus on the Klingon Destroyers, Frigates, and Bajoran ships.  
General Chang kept his fleet near Bajor hoping to lure the Allied ships into range of the planetary missiles. Chang coordinated his force very well with the Bajorans hoping to use the defenses and tenacity of the Bajorans to assist him. The Klingons and Bajorans had established a Starbase with shipyards but the defenses were lacking on the Starbase so the fleet was still the main line of defense, especially against the numbers that the allies were bringing to the fight.  
The Elerians arrived first followed by the Cardassians. They decided to wait for all ships to arrive before attacking. The Klingons sent their bird of preys and hit at the Cardassians knocking out two Cardassian destroyers early in the fight but the Elerian interceptors were released and drove off the Klingons destroying one Bird of Prey.  
Tarnum had previously reinforced the Klingon fleet hoping to destroy the allies in the battle. He told General Chang that the Klingons hope for victory rested on him and that the Empire had provided him with all the necessary resources. The Klingon fleet was larger therefore then the Allies had expected and the easy win was not available.  
Despite early Cardassian caution on the attack, the Elerians voted to go forward with the superior numbers. Other Cardassians pushed Legate Lobum to attack and the Cardassian fleet moved forward with the Elerians and Breen behind them. The Psilon and Gnolam fleets were bogged down early by Bajoron starships armed with weapons perfectly suited to slow their advance. The Bajorans began to take casualties but it bought time for the defenders.  
The Dampner weapons of the Breen proved effective early in the fight as they destroyed two Klingon D7 Cruisers easily. General Chang feared the Breen would cut his fleet to pieces and ordered Bajoran defenses to focus on the Breen ships. Missiles pelted the Breen Cruisers and knocked five of them out of commission as their armor was weakened from the barriage. The Klingons counter-attacked with their D9s and Bird of Preys (as their Cruisers were mostly focused with the Cardassian and Elerian force at the time) and destroyed 3 of the disabled Cruisers. The Breen continued the fight with tenacity, however, causing the Klingons to compare their courage with the Gorn. The Klingons losses began to mount. Chang focused on the Elerian Carriers. The Klingons focused all their fighter craft at the Elerian Interceptors to delay them while 3 Ktinga Battlecruisers broke loose from the Cardassian assault and hit the Carriers one by one destroying one of them and forcing the other to flee with many of the interceptors trying to return and re-fuel both their life support systems and fuel.  
Despite the Elerian losses, the Cardassian swarming tactics had succeeded at knocking out 2 Klingon Ktinga Battlecruisers and five D7 Cruisers at the loss of only 8 Cardassian Destroyers. Chang decided to adopt a similar strategy to deal with the Breen using his D9s, Bajoran Sailships, and Destroyers to overwhelm the Breen capital ships. The Breen loses finally mounted. Chang kept his capital ships away from the Breen’s Dampner Beam by focusing them against the Cardassian/Elerian force (the Elerians by now had moved the remainder of their fleet into the Cardassian fold). Legate Lobum realized the plan and began to move his fleet to assist the Breen. Dumar Tola took 2 Cardassian Cruisers and 15 Destroyers and broke through to the heavily damaged Breen Fleet. However, the Bajorans fired more missiles and disabled both the Cardassian cruisers killing Dumar Tola in the attack. The Klingons began destroying the Allied fleet ship by ship. They lured the Psilon/Gnolam fleet into coming to aid the Breen and trapped them in ambush with Bird of Preys and D9s bogging pelting them from all direction. The Psilons and Gnolams, despite losses, finally broke through to the Breen pocket to relieve the renemants of the Breen fleet as well as Dumar Tola’s fleet. The allies still matched the Klingons in numbers and two more Ktinga Battlecruisers had been knocked out by Lobums fleet. The Klingon situation still looked dire. General Chang ordered a general fight to the death as the lines broke down and ships fired from all direction. Chang manueaver his Battlecruiser with several other ships and hit the Cardassian command ship. Lobum lost communication with his fleet but his ship survived. A general retreat was finally order once communication came online by the Allies. The allied fleet began to pull out of Bajor. Although the Klingon/Bajoran fleet was nearly wiped out, the Allies had lost almost their entire fleet and the planetary defenses were starting to take a toll. A ground invasion looked impossible at this point. 

Outcome: The battle was costly for both sides as most of the capital ships were lost. Bajor’s defense systems were ultimately tie-breaker as Legate Lobum felt the allies did not have the forces necessary to handle the planet and the missiles were taking a toll on the lighter armored Allied ships. However, unknown, to the Allies, most of the Bajoran missile fleet was depleted and the Klingon fleet was in shambles. The Klingons survived the battle but the First Battle of Bajor would ultimate be a strategic loss for the Klingons as their fleet along the Cardassian front was bled dry and would not be able to provide any assistance against the invasion of the Seventh Fleet.  
On the Allied side, most of the Allied fleet was knocked out of commission and the offensive came to a hault. Despite this, Federation victories would inspire future Allied attacks, even without numbers, into the collapsing Klingon front in Cardassian space. 

Federation Offensive

Jon E. Williams received the news of the Battle of Bajor shortly before crossing into Klingon lines. The Federation decided to continue the attack despite hearing that the Allies had been forced to retreat. Williams argued that the Federation could still meet up with the Tzenkethi fleet. Starfleet was unclear of the casualties the Klingons had taken and were surprised by the weakness of the Klingons forces in the area. Jon E. Williams wanted the Fourth Fleet to make movements towards Rigel as a diversionary assault to keep KIF II at bay while Williams force pushed into Klingon space. Also, the Second and Third Fleets were ordered to make attacks on the other side of the Klingon Empire as further diversions. The Federation began to hit the Klingons on all fronts simulatenously on March 20. Janesh Patel moved at Romii, Sulu entered Orion Space and liberated Fesarius and the First Federation, John Harriman pulled his fleet and engaged KIF II in several small battles along the Rigelian front, Williams pulled his fleet away from the Rigel front and hit the KIF II pocket separating his fleet from Klingon and Gorn space. This pocket which was the only connection between KIF II’s line and KIF V’s line was very small and quickly overwhelmed in the Battle of Leptic III by a far superior Federation fleet. The Klingon force of 3 D7 Cruisers and 10 Destroyers lost half their ships and pulled out in retreat. This opened a hole in the Klingon lines that the Seventh Fleet entered. KIF II and KIF V were at risk of being cut off from each other. Every system in the Gorn Hegemony and Cardassian occupied space as well as Klingon systems along those borders were fair game for the Seventh Fleet. Tarnum ordered General Chang to engage the Seventh Fleet with force. Chang’s response to Tarnum was “With what ships?” The Klingons had lost nearly the entire fleet at the Battle of Bajor. KIF I and General Lar were pulled out of Rigel and moved to Gorn to defend the Gorn Hegemony from the Federation. The Federation entered the Gorn Hegemony by March and liberated one rebel Gorn system, the Jadis System, but fighting became bogged down on Cestus as the Gorn resisted the “foreign invaders.” Not wanting to get into a ground war and to avoid having KIF I to engage him, Williams pressed forward the offensive to Tzenkethi space leaving part of his fleet behind to deal with KIF I. General Larr made his only mistake of the war by not trying to counterattack Williams rear until it was too late. KIF I sat inactive in Gorn space defending it while the Seventh Fleet pushed forward. By April 10, Williams had made it to the Tzenkethi border. The Cardassians attacked again with small fleets and pushed the Klingons back. General Chang, in fear of being cut-off from Klingon space, abanded Bajor and began to pull back to Gorn space to meet up with KIF I. KIF II was also on full retreat and by April 20, 2310, they were forced to abandon Rigel to the Fourth Fleet. The news of Rigel’s liberation brought celebration to the Federation and nearly crushed the spirit of the Klingons. KIF II was too weak to hold back the Fourth Fleet without the forces of KIF I to support. The Klingon forces in Cardassia were also now cut off from the front line. Things were worse in Tzenkethi space as the rebels had amassed a large enought fleet to match the small Klingon occupation force. With the arrival of Federation ships, the balance was tipped in Tzenkethi favor and Rarl Worf abandoned the Tzenkethi homeworld and many other systems to the Allies. By mid June of 2310, over half of the Tzenkethi Empire was liberated.  
The disasters for the Klingons in this front were also being matched on the Romulan-Orion front. Manesh Patel as instructed had launched a counter-offensive with the Romulans for Romii. Geron Martoc unable to supply his lines pulled out and retreated to Chaltock abandoning all the conquests in the previous offensive. Manesh Patel decided upon a separate plan of splitting a portion of his fleet away to assist the Third Fleet’s invasion of Orion space rather than pushing on against KIF IV. The portion of the Second Fleet and Third Fleets engaged the Klingons at the Battle of Lerga Yodal in Orion Space on May 5, 2310. 

Battle of Lerga Yodal  
Date: May 5, 2310  
Outcome: Major and Decisive Federation Victory  
Federation Second Fleet: USS Resolution (Ambassador Class), USS Hope, USS Nathan Samuels, USS Gilgriese (Excelsior Class), USS Kite, USS Hercules, USS Princeton, USS Tula, USS Challanger (Constitution Class), USS Miranda II, USS Bakial, USS Moltke, USS Prism, USS Samson (Miranda Class), USS Kalamazoo, USS Orater, USS Bozeman (Armstrong Class), USS Bynum (Soyuz Class)  
Command: Captain Andross Golo (Betazoid)

Casualties: USS Nathan Samuels, USS Kite, USS Princeton, USS Kalamazoo, and USS Prism lost.

Federation Third Fleet: 

Heavy Crusers: USS Excelsior, USS Warspite, USS Yorktown II, USS Iphegenia, USS Orion, USS Celka, USS Mapay (Excelsior Class)

Cruisers: USS Essex, USS Gandhi, USS Xian, USS Copernicus, USS Illustrious, (Constitution Class), USS Nebula, USS Andromeda, USS Perry (Constellation Class), USS Coridan (Saladin Class)

Light Cruisers: USS Alderan, USS USS Yuri Gagarin (Armstrong Class), USS Zeus, USS Mapow, USS Camelot, USS Rigel, USS Pacifica, USS Antartic, USS Valentina Tereshkova, USS Haumea (Miranda Class)

Destroyers: USS Spock, USS Kyoto, USS Trill, USS Kerrigan, USS Ceres (Soyuz Class); USS Paulus Potter, USS Journeyman, USS Liverpool (Mayflower Class), USS Antiochus, USS Companion, USS Argos (Ptolemy Class). 10 Orion Destroyers

Casualties: USS Mapay, USS Copernicus, USS Perry, USS Zeus, USS Mapow, USS Pacifica, USS Kerrigan, USS Argos, USS Liverpool, and 2 Orion Destroyers lost. 

Command: Admiral Hikaru Sulu

Klingon Imperial Force II: 5 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 20 D7 Cruisers, 18 Bird of Preys, 29 Destroyers, 14 D9 Frigates, 300 Fighters.  
Casualties: 4 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 12 D7 Cruisers, 13 Bird of Preys, 20 Destroyers, 11 D9 Frigates, 293 Fighters lost. General Kala Harot killed.

Command: General Kala Harot

Description: The Klingons were heavily out numbered and out gun in the fight. This was due to the surprise movement of the Second Fleet to join with the Third Fleet. Despite this, Kala Harot rushed into battle attempting to show his “courage.” It was a fatal mistake and Tarnum was unable to communicate to KIF III in enough time to order them to fall back and defend Orion. Kala Harot did a great job of collecting his fleet together but, in the end, he did not have enough ships. His strategy was poor as he attempted to flank the Federation fleet early with his Bird of Preys but they were caught alone and over half of them lost to fire by the Federation fleet before they could regroup with his main fleet. Despite the early loss of his Bird of Preys with little damage to the Federation fleet, Kala again attacked hitting at the USS Resolution hoping to take the new Ambassador style ship out and harm the Federation morale. The Excelsiors knocked out his Ktinga Cruisers before they could mount a successful attack. Kala Harlot tried to escape but the faster Mirandas and Armstrong ships flanked the Klingon fleet to prevent the escape. The Klingons had pushed forward and now were almost surrounded by Federation ships with superior fire power. 

Outcome: Klingon ships began to break formation and flee but the casualties mounted. Kala Harot’s flagship was lost and he died in the action. KIF III was decimated and eliminated as a fighting unit. Tarnum had to order all reserve ships to the region to prevent another Federation breakthrough of the new hole in the Klingon lines that would allow the Federation full access to the heart of the Klingon Empire. Even the fleets Tarnum put together were feared to be too weak to stop a Federation advanced. KIF IV had to abandon Romulan space and push back to defend the Klingon Empire’s borders. The battle was a major truimph for the Federation and the Allies and began to spell the end of Tarnum’s Empire. 

After Lerga Yedal 

The destruction of KIF III shocked both the Federation and the Klingons. The Federation did not have the resources to take advantage of the victory and invade the Klingon Empire. However, Orion was liberated. On the Romulan front, Geron Martoc found his position indefensible and fell back all the way to the border only holding a few Romulan systems as a buffer to fight in instead of Klingon space which was a common strategy for the Empire under Tarnum of avoiding fighting in Klingon space. KIF IV could not defend an invasion from Orion space as well as assist against the fighting in Bulrathi space against the Mrrshans and Bulrathi rebels. Geron Martoc would fight a minor battle against the Romulans and defeat them near Chaltock before pulling out of the system. He wanted at least a few victories to lift the sinking moral of his forces. His battered fleet now stood as the main force on the Romulan/Orion front although it was being reinforced by as many ships as Tarnum could spare. The Second and Third Federation Fleets, rebuilt Romulan Imperial Fleet, and the revived Mrrshan fleet supported by Bulrathi rebels all stood against his force but the Allied advanced stalled during the Summer and Fall of 2310 as the allies had to consolidate their recent gains.  
The victory at Lerga Yedal also had significant influence on the Cardassian-Rigel fronts as the Klingons did not get the reinforcements they desperately needed. The Cardassians and Elerians launched a second invasion of Bajor but by this time the Klingons had pulled out. The Second Battle of Bajor was mostly fought on the planet and saw the deaths of over 6 million Cardassian soldiers, 10 million Bajorans, and around 100,000 Elerians. The Cardassians initiated a harsh occupation that would last for a century. The Federation publicly opposed the Cardassian re-occupation of Bajor hoping to allow Bajor to become an independent republic. However, the Federation could not afford angering their allies and did not press the issue further. The relationships between the Allies were already starting to breakdown as the Cardassians, Elerians, and Romulans all disagreed with the Federation post-war scenario. However, at the time, all powers were still content to work together to see the Klingon Empire defeated.  
The Klingons focused on a new defensively line in the Gorn Hegemony. The Cardassians and their allies pushed into the Gorn Hegemony and got involved in a heavy struggle. The Seventh Fleet raided Klingon systems along the Gorn border and did some damage but pulled out shortly after the raids. The Seventh Fleet by July had fought their way back through the Klingon lines and escaped to the Rigel system where they planned to meet up with the First Fleet and launch an invasion of the Klingon Empire bypassing the Gorn Hegemony and other Klingon occupied worlds. The new offensive was set to start in August but stalled until October.

Situation by Fall of 2310

By the time of the October offensive, the lines had been reformed for both sides. General Chang, with the loss of more ships, managed to fight his way through and meet up with Rarl Worf’s small fleet and KIF I which continued to resist the invaders in the Gorn systems. Surprisingly to the Allies, most of the Gorn fought with the Klingons and began a strong resistence. This was the first location of such a resistence the allies had truly faced as most of the systems taken up to this point had greeted them as liberators. The Gorn Hegemony became a bloody affair as Gorn fought Gorn over the direction their people should follow. Admiral Jon E. Williams suggested that the Allies, for the most part, by pass the region and had pulled his fleet back to Rigel once he was sure that the Tzenkethi could function on their own. Despite this, smaller Federation task forces were now mixed in with the Allies on all fronts and Federation personnel would continue to fight on the Gorn front for the duration of the war.  
Nearly the entire Romulan Star Empire was now under the jurisdiction of Romulus once again. The Cardassians, too, had taken back all their systems. Over three-quarters of the Tzenkethi Empire had been restored. Most of the Orion Empire was also liberated. The Klingons were fighting a losing campaign as their enemies were fully liberated and building up their forces to overwhelm the Klingons. The Klingons now longer had the forces to stop the Allies. However, the Klingon people did not want to surrender and believed that Tarnum could work his magic again to defend the Klingon Empire. They feared Cardassian, Elerian, Bulrathi, and Romulan troops invading their systems and pushed the Klingon High Council to continue the war with these races but to seek peace with the Federation. Tarnum at this point also wanted peace with the Federation whom he saw, rightlyfully, as the main threat.  
The Federation and Romulan forces along the border planned an operation against the Reges Systems to match the October operation from Rigel but this was stalled by a Meklar invasion in September that required Federation assistance. The Meklar didn’t have the number of ships that engaged the Klingons but proved to be more damaging as the Allies were not prepared for the assault and their response was poor. In the end, however, the invasion was thwarted and had only the effect of halting the Federation advances while negotiations started with the Klingons

Klingons negotiate with the Federation

The Klingon Empire proposed a peace treaty to the Federation offering to return all of the UFP and Orion systems still held by Klingon forces to their respected owners. The Klingons offered peace to the Federation, Bolians, First Federation, Trilarians, Orions, Psilons, Gnolams, and Ferengi but did not desire peace with the other combatents. The Federation countered with a demand that they also return all other occupied systems and grant the Bulrathi and Gorn freedom. The Federation also demanded a couple of border systems and Klingon assistance against the Meklar and Sakkra Empires. Although the Klingons were willing to give up border systems, granting Gorn freedom proved to be a sticking point. Most importantly, the Cardassians, Elerians, and Romulans wanted to continue the fight and seize Klingon systems for themselves. The Federation ordered all offensives to halt (including Admiral Williams planned offensive) and decided to meet on October 3 on Earth to discuss the peace treaty. Representatives of all belligerent nations were invited to the conference. 

The meeting on Earth had the following nations represented:

United Federation of Planets including representatives from Vulcan, Andoria, Earth, Tellar, Denobulas, Rigel, Benzar, Trill, Berrengaria, Trilar, Bolaris, Risa, Arcadia, Coridan, Delta, Ariolo, Caitia, Grazer, Kasheeta, Ardana, and Zaranite. 

Klingon Empire – who also had a delegate for the Gorn, Bulrathi, and Klingon-Romulan Empire. The Klingons also invited a Bajor fighter as representive for a Bajoran Republic.  
Romulan Star Empire  
Darlok Coalition – By this time the Darloks had surrendered but attended  
Cardassian Union  
Elerian Empire  
Breen Confederacy  
Psilon Alliance  
Orion Empire  
First Federation  
Ferengi Alliance  
Gnolam Confederacy  
Tzenkethi Empire  
Mrrshan Empire  
Bulrathi Rebellion  
Gorn Rebellion  
Alkari Empire  
Tholian Assembly  
The United Silicoid Nation

The discussions started with a focus on the return of occupied territories of both parties. The Cardassians had managed to capture a couple of Klingon systems before the war and refused to return them to the Klingons despite protest. The Romulans also demanded the Reges Systems which was met by protest from the Klingons as well as members of the Allied Nations. Most of the delegates refused to even recognize the delegate from the Klingon-Romulan Empire or the delegate representing the Bulrathi on behalf of the Klingons as both were considered puppet states and illegitimate regimes. The Klingons secretly engaged in a divide and conquer mentality trying to secure peace with some Allied nations and pit the Allies against each other. The Klingons quickly brought up Bajor as several Bajorans had fled with the Klingon fleet and were now still fighting in the KIF. The Klingons asked that Bajor be granted independence. To Tarnum this was a red straw argument to push for conflict between the Federation and Cardassians. The Klingons wanted to distance the Federation from the other powers in hopes the Federation would sign the peace treaty.  
The negotiations would eventually break down with the following points of contention being notable.

1\. The Cardassians would not recognize Bajoran independence despite requests from the Klingon Empire and their puppets as well as the Federation, First Federation, Bulrathi rebels, Psilons, Betazed, Ferengi, and the Alkari. The Cardassians received backing from Romulus, Draconis (Elerians), Breen, and Gnol. These two factions would slowly mold into the factions that would eventually become rivals in a future cold war after this war. The Tzenkethi and Orions wisely decided to stay out of the fight.

2\. The Cardassians refused to return Klingon systems and both parties showed no desire to have peace with each other despite a Federation desire that the war be brought to a full end.

3\. The Romulan Star Empire demanded the Reges Systems and about 20 systems be handed over to their Empire. This was not just opposed by the Klingons but also the Orions, Darloks, and Bulrathi who became wary of Romulas growing into a threat after the war. 

4\. The Klingon Empire refused to recognize an independent Gorn Hegemony arguing that the Gorn did not desire this at the time. They appeared to be open about allowing the Gorn to vote on their status but other breakdowns in negotiations took place before the Klingons made a final decision on this proposal.

5\. Tholian Assembly, despite being neutral, was invited to the talks. The Klingons spent their time trying to get the Tholians to enter the war in secret. The Klingon Empire and Tholian Assembly did agree to a secret pact that if the Klingons could get a peace treaty with the Federation and their allies, the Tholians would join the war against the Breen, Cardassians, and Elerians. The Tholians feared a Breen-Cardassian-Elerian Alliance which would control the entire sector. The Tholians would later fight the Breen in a bloody border war. 

6\. The state of the Bulrathi Empire was also a heavy contention as the Klingons once again argued that the Bulrathi were a part of their Empire. The Bulrathi rebellion sought independence while the Klingons did have a puppet representative from the Bulrathi to argue the Bulrathi were an integral province of the Klingon Empire. None of the Allies supported this contention and pushed for full Bulrathi independence. The Klingons were only open to this idea if the Federation gave them concessions in other areas. 

7\. The Klingons also demanded that several Tzenkethi systems still in their possession be retained by the Klingon Empire. This may have been more a bargaining chip argument to try to win their position in other areas. If it meant peace with the Federation, the Klingons were open to abandoning all their claims to the former Tzenkethi Empire.

8\. The Romulan Star Empire refused to abandon many of their conquests in Silicoid space. The Silicoids were very reclusive like the Meklar and rarely engaged in diplomacy. However, on this occasion they sent a diplomat. The Federation supported the Silicoid people who had seen parts of their very large nation occupied by the Romulans. The Romulans refused to give up any territory despite protest from almost every nation at the meeting. Upon receiving support from the Romulans on Bajor, the Cardassians and their allies the Breen and Elerians change sides and began supporting the Romulan Claims.  
Overall, the interest of most parties, especially the Klingons, was dubious at this conference. The Cardassian Union, Elerian Empire, and Klingon Empire all did not want peace with each other. The Klingons were openly using the conference to get allies, try to divide the current allies against themselves, and play diplomacy to put themselves in a better position. However, the Klingons should have taken the conferece more seriously because their enemies were amassing against their Empire and were at the gates. The Klingon diplomat, Traj, later wrote that the conference was a failure on the Klingons part to acknowledge a great opportunity when presented. The Klingons would suffer another year of war that would devastate their Empire.  
The conference did display how divided the Allies were already becoming. The fear of the Klingons at this point was all put diminished. Most nations were thinking of the political climate after the war. The Cardassian Union, Elerian Empire, Romulan Star Empire, and the Federation appeared to be the nations that would emerge as powers. The Cardassian Union would rely on alliances with the Elerian Empire and Breen Confederacy to hold power in the region and keep out Federation influence. The Romulan Empire, which appeared to be surrounded by enemies with the Darloks, Klingons, Silicoids, and Meklar, would ultimate reach out to Cardassia as well to counter their rivals, most notable the Federation. The rest of the races feared the Federation and its growing economic power. The Federation had its own designs on the shape of the quadrant after the war and hoped for a more peaceful existence with most of the races having secured territorial sovereignty and freedom. This put the Federation at odds with the growing aggressiveness of the Cardassians and Romulans. The Romulans and Cardassians knew it would take time to rebuild their powerbase but both hoped to eventually rival the Federation and all other enemies in future conflicts. The Darloks, Orions, Bulrathi, and Tzenkethi would never reclaim their former glory after being battered by the conflict and would have to rely on the Federation or other nations for defense in future wars. 

The Fall of Tarnum’s Klingon Empire

The Conference on Earth helped to buy time for Tarnum. Tarnum was disappointed that he could not get the Federation out of the war but was still confident that in Klingon space he could perhaps inflict heavy losses on the Allies and force some of them out of the war. The Klingon Empire was also unable to secure Tholian support. Their former allies the Bajorans and Darloks were defeated. The Gorn were under assault but most of them stood loyal to the Empire out of fear that Klingon rule would be replaced with Cardassian tyaranny. The Klingons of Tarnum’s Empire had treated the Gorn with pride and as a fellow warrior race rather than subservients. The Gorn had come to respect and love Tarnum.  
Tarnum meanwhile rebuilt as much of his forces as possible. He had enough time to release the first Vor’cha heavy cruiser which Tarnum considered to be a game-changer and a weapon that could bring down the Federation. It was a powerful and inexpensive to produce. However, the Klingons resources were stretched at this point. Crews were green and not the veterans that once filled the ranks of the Empire. These veterans had died fighting at Andoria, Berrengaria, P’Jem, Rigel, Lerga Yodal, and Bajor. The Klingon morale had increased during the months of truce. They became confident that they could hold off their many enemies and perhaps force the Federation back to talks again.  
After the conference, Admiral Jon E. Williams, was reported to have said, “I knew it before hand and I let Starfleet know that these negotiations were pointless, now the enemy has had time to fortify and reform their lines.” In truth the conference did not hurt the Allied position as the Klingons still had thin lines along the Rigel front and the Romulans, Cardassians, and Tzenkethi had rebuilt parts of their fleet and consolidated the recent liberated systems. The Breen had also redeployed a new and larger fleet to the front. Starfleet wanted a very large coordinated offensive to destroy the Klingon Empire and Admiral Williams agreed. The Allies through a subspace conference meeting proposed the following offensives:

Starfleet’s Fourth and Seventh Fleet were to be put under command of Admiral Williams and invade the center of the Klingon Empire with the hope of seizing Boreth, Pheben, and perhaps eventually Qonos. 

Starfleet’s Second and Third Fleets under the command of Admiral Patel would also push towards Boreth and flank Geron Martoc’s fleet based in the Reges system.

The Romulan Fleet was to push into the Reges Systems and Bulrathi Empire and keep Geron Martoc’s fleet engaged while the Second and Third Fleets surrounded and crush the Klingons. 

The Cardassians, Breens, and Elerians, were to push into the Klingon Empire and seize Donatu and the systems they had previously seized before Tarnum came to power while at the same time engaging the Klingons along the Gorn hegemony.

The Mrrshan fleet was to meet up with the Romulans and assist in the liberation of the Bulrathi.

The Tzenkethi Empire was to invade the Klingons and eventually move into Mempa fighting the renemants of the House of Pashtu. 

The Operations began with mixed results. The invasion of the Gorn Hegemony got bogged down in bloody fighting while Geron Martoc, despite being overwhelmed, put up more resistence then initially thought.

The Bloody Gorn-Donatu Campaigns

An allied Cardassian-Elerian Force began their offensive soon after the failed negotiations. By November they focused an attack on Cestus. General Chang and Larr decided to launch a counter offensive in hope of destroying the Allied Fleet. Cestus ground fighting became bloody and would eventually costs the lives of 5 million Cardassians, 15 million Gorn, 3 million Klingons, a million Elerians, and 30,000 Breen soldiers. 

Cestus Campaign  
Dates: October 30, 2310 – March 17, 2311  
Outcome: Inconclusive

Klingon-Gorn Imperial Forces: 1 Vor’cha Cruiser, 5 Ktinga Cruisers, 16 D7 Cruisers, 5 Bird of Preys, 30 Gorn and Klingon Destroyers, 10 D9 Frigates, 200 Fighters, 200 Gun Defense Turrets, 150 Million Gorn and Klingon Troops and Milita units  
Command: General Chang, General Larr

Allied Forces –  
Cardassians: 6 Cruisers, 42 Destroyers, 200 Fighters, 30 Bombers, 20 Cardassian Orders of 20 million soldiers

Elerians: 5 Carriers, 7 Cruisers, 23 Destroyers, 1000 Interceptors, 5 Million Elerian Group Troops, 100,000 Armor Pieces. 

Breen: 10 Cruisers, 16 Destroyers, over 500,000 Breen Combat troops

Federation: USS Illustrious (Excelsior Class), USS Hidgen, USS Cestus (Miranda Class), USS Lupper (Ptolemy Class), 100,000 Federation Ground Troops supported by Armor and Artillery units.

Psilons: 2 Destroyers, 5 Transports, 50,000 ground troops

Gnolams: 5 Freighter Transports, 15,000 ground troops

Gorn Rebels: 2 Destroyers, 8 Frigates, 2 million ground troops, plus 20 million rebel militia units on the planet. 

Command: Cardassian Legate Lobum, Gorn Rebel Leader Obus, Elerian Countess Villasel

Description: The campaign for the Cestus system was not just one of the bloodiest battle of the Tarnum wars; it was a Gorn civil war. Most of the Gorn still sided with the Klingons but there was a sizable force of rebels that revolted against Klingon rule to support the Allies. The bloody campaign was only amplified by the large number of Cardassian forces that would participate in the planetary war. The Gorn rebels and Federation troops tried to win the hearts and minds of the Gorn citizenry but failed. The space engagement took place over the course of the first month. Larr was the Commander of the sizable Klingon-Gorn renement in the area still loyal to Tarnum. He focused most of the Klingon/Gorn troops into the battle in hope of ambushing the Allies. The Allied fleet also put significant numbers into the campaign believing this to be their final battle and hoping to destroy the Klingon forces on that front and end the Klingon threat. There was a vision of this being the deciding battle for both sides which drew most of the resources from the region into one campaign. The Klingons put more emphasis on this region then even their own Klingon settlements near the Cardassian border. The Allies would seize Donatu on October 22, 2310 causing the Klingons to redeploy part of their fleet and forces once again to that front, but the main forces engaged at Cestus. The battle was a primarily scattered ship on ship action. The Elerian interceptors and Breen Dampner Beams proved to be the deciding factor as the interceptors knocked out Klingon destroyers and defenses while the Dampner beams would smash through the shields of the Ktinga cruiser. The Vor’cha cruiser with Larr as commander proved to be able to repel the Dampner Beams but the USS Illustrious and several Cardassian crusiers overwhelmed the Vor’cha cruiser, IKS Goric, and it was forced to fall back with the remainder of the fleet to the Gorn Homeworld. The space battle was a huge Allied victory but was costly as numerous Cardassian and Elerian ships were lost. The ground invasion took months to sort out and casualties ran high. The Klingons began a hit and run guerilla warfare policy with their ships in the region and inflicted more and more losses on the Allied Fleet orbiting Cestus. The Allied fleet became bogged down trying to defend the arriving transports and freighters. The USS Hidgen was destroyed in a surprise attack from Gorn suicide ships that hit the Miranda Class starship’s war engines. 

Outcome: The Allied Fleet was eventually forced to withdraw after heavy casualties both on the planet and above the planet. The Klingons and Gorn continued to plague them with suicide attacks or hit and run attacks on starships while the ground campaign became a bloody stalemate despite heavy orbital bombing and support. The Cardassians wiped out large amounts of the planetary population in the ground fighting and their cruelty turned off support from the Federation who decided to focus the fight on other fronts. Cestus would never truly fall to the Allies and the Gorn campaign would be ongoing for the remainder of the war like ground battles in other Gorn systems such as Caen which saw heavy fighting. The war would end before the Gorn front was secured.

Donatu was re-attacked by the Klingons in April of 2311 and would become a battle ground for the remainder of the war. The Cardassians could not draw the Klingons into a full fight and the Klingons had too many losses to resist the Allied movements. The Allies would eventually besiege more Klingon and Gorn worlds besides Cestus and even started a blockade on Gorn by early May of 2311. Shortly before Tarnum had surrendered to the Federation. Total casualties on the planetary fighting and space battles took the lives of 100,000,000 Klingons, 50,000,000 Gorn, 80,000,000 Cardassians, 8,000,000 Elerians, and over 2,000,000 more Allied casualties. 

Tzenkethi campaign for Mempa

The Tzenkethi, with Federation support, entered Klingon space in December of 2310. Most of their early offensives were focused on pushing the Klingons out of Tzenkethi space which lasted until January of 2311. The Tzenkethi began the break out but found early resistence by the House of Pashtu and Rarl Worf’s renemant which only included a couple of Klingon D7 Cruisers and a fleet of Destroyers. Despite this, the Tzenkethi had not developed a large enough fleet to support a major operation in Klingon space. This front would mostly be isolated raids and attempts by the Tzenkethi to capture Klingon worlds. The Battle of Celtoc proved to be the death blow to the Tzenkethi offensive as millions of Tzenkethi ground troops died trying to take the planet and their potential for occupation of planets slowed. The Klingons also lost about a million ground troops in this bloody fight. The fleets mostly engaged in hit and run movements and did not have a full engagement. Rarl Worf would surrender his fleet after the news that Qonos had surrendered on May 8. Mempa would never be captured or invaded by Allied forces during the war. 

The Romulan Front

Geron Martoc was nearly outnumber 3 to 1 by the end of the negotiations, especially after Tarnum pulled more ships to stop Jon E. Williams in the eventually climatic battle of Rura Penthe. Before this battle, Geron Martoc was forced to fight off a Romulan invasion in November of 2310. This was not the same Romulan fleets the Klingons had fought before as the Romulans had built up stronger forces during the truce. There was no longer any D7s in the Romulan fleet as Prelate Nagar had ordered them discontinued preferring the Romulan War Cruisers and Bird of Preys. The Romulans also released a new Romulan Scout Cruiser class starship. The D’Deridex was still several years away from development but the Romulans had started developing their powerful next era ships. A better grade of disrupter was also in development and some early prototypes were included in the Romulan fleets. The Romulans pushed the Klingons back and seized the valuable planet of Tombla which was a major mining region in the Reges System. Despite that, Geron Martoc, would win one of the greatest battles in the late part of the war at the Terl system which would stop the Romulan invasion of Klingon space.

Battle of Terl  
Date: December 7, 2310  
Outcome: Klingon Victory

Romulan Imperial Fleet: 10 War Cruisers, 3 Scout Cruisers, 32 Bird of Preys, 21 Destroyers, 8 Romulan Scout Ships, 76 Romulan Interceptors (replaced Attack Fighters).  
Commander: Prelate Hagar  
Casualties: 2 War Cruisers, 2 Scout Cruisers, 18 Bird of Preys, 6 Destroyers, 2 Scout ships lost, and 19 Interceptors lost

Klingon Imperial Fleet: 4 Ktinga Cruisers, 17 D7 Cruisers, 19 Destroyers, 16 Bird of Preys, 25 D9 Frigates, 60 Fighters  
Commander: Geron Martoc  
Casualties: 6 D7 Cruisers, 3 Destroyers, 8 Bird of Preys, 7 D9 Frigates, and 26 Fighters lost.

Description: The Klingons shocking decided to forego fighting near the planet defenses and preferred an ambush in deeper space. The Klingons caught the Romulans by surprise and the Bird of Preys focused attacks on the powerful Romulan Cruisers dealing out significant damage. Romulan Scout Cruisers were armed with early versions of the new disrupters and they knocked out several of the D7 Cruisers easily which had outdated shields and armor by this point of the war. The Ktinga Cruisers however engaged and drove them off. The Romulan Bird of Preys were engaged by the D9 Frigates but the Klingons took losses. The Klingons decided to withdraw but were chased by more Romulan ships. The Klingons counterattacked and fought desperate enough using the firepower of their cruisers to take out Romulan Bird of Preys. The Romulan Fleet decided to withdraw after taking severe damage. The Klingons held off the Romulan fleet but the Romulans still poised a threat. Therefore, Geron Martoc pursued them again and attacked the retreating Romulans. The fleets engaged often at warp speeds and the Klingons ambushed numerous Romulan ships punishing the Romulan attackers.

Outcome: The Battle slowed the Romulan offensive and inflicted damage but it did not stop the Romulans. They would rethink their strategy and work with the Bulrathi Rebels and Mrrshan Empire in an attack on Ursa around 4 months later. An interesting fact about the battle was that Geron Martoc still had some Romulan loyalist from the Klingon-Romulan Empire serving in his fleet.

Geron Martoc immediately worried about being attacked by the Federation Force of Manesh Patel but this force was slowed by Tarnum’s quick victory at the Battle of Ty’Gorok mentioned below. The astounding victory brought back the magic of Tarnum and inspired the Klingon morale as many felt that the Klingons would win their own Andoria/P’Jem style campaign. Geron Martoc, found his front even more threatened by the Mrrshans which were looking to liberate the entire Bulrathi Empire by seizing Ursa. The Romulans began to assist the Mrrshans and Geron Martoc knew he had to intervene in the region. By late March he was pulled into what would become the larger Ursa Campaign.

Ursa Campaign  
Dates: March 24, 2311 – May 9, 2311  
Outcome: Indecisive, Klingon forces surrendered after announcement of general surrender of Empire

Klingon Imperial Forces: 4 Ktinga Cruisers, 13 D7 Cruisers, 9 Bird of Preys, 26 Destroyers, 18 D9 Frigates, 120 Fighters, 3 Star Bases, 48 Gun Turrets, 90,000,000 Ground Troops  
Casualties: 23,000,000 ground troops, 6 Bird of Preys, 10 Destroyers, 3 D7 Cruisers, 6 D9 Frigates, 1 Star Base, 17 Gun Turrets, and 98 Fighters lost. 

Allied Forces:

Romulan Imperial Forces: 6 War Cruisers, 4 Scout Cruisers, 16 Bird of Preys, 15 Destroyers, 12 Scout Ships, 200 Interceptors, 35 Armed Transports, 20,000,000 Romulan Groud Troops  
Commander: Prelate Hagar  
Casualties: 1 War Cruiser, 1 Scout Cruiser, 7 Bird of Preys, 3 Destroyers, 9 Scout Ships, 81 Interceptors, and 3 Armed Transports lost. 8,000,000 Romulan Ground Troops killed. 

Bulrathi Rebel Forces: 5 Destroyers, 3 Frigates, 91 Fighter craft, estimated 200,000,000 militia rebels on Ursa fought in uprising.  
Commander: General Buldact  
Casualties: 1 Destroyer lost and 87 Fighter Craft lost. Estimated 80,000,000 civilian and military casualties.

Mrrshan Empire: 2 Cruisers, 10 Destroyers, 17 Frigates, 40 Transports, 80 Fighters, 15,000,000 Mrrshan Ground Troops  
Commander: Admiral Laczum  
Casualties: 1 Cruiser, 4 Destroyers, 9 Frigates, 10 Transports, and 38 Fighters lost. Over 2,000,000 Mrrshan ground troops killed. 

Description: There was never a full out space battle. The Allies had already landed ground troops by the time Geron arrive with most of his fleet. He began to fight sporadic battles to prevent more transports from arriving winning the first two fights on March 31 and April 7 but the Allies broke through again on April 11 and April 16. The Klingons fleet took casualties and fell back to engage in raids and support Klingon landings on the planet. The Romulans and Mrrshans relied heavily on Bulrathi rebels and by March 28 had one continent on the planet under their control. The Ursa industrial base was focused on weapons for both sides as the planet turned into a bitter battle ground. The Klingons held the Northern and Eastern continent throughout the war while a central continent, called Perra, was the main battleground. The Klingons avoided a scortch earth policy and often tried to aid civilian Bulrathi in hopes of still winning them over. The Bulrathi detested Klingons, however, and often worked against them. The Klingon forces were on the verge of surrender in Perra when news came of the Allied victory at Rura Penthe and the surrender of Qonos. 

Outcome: The Klingons, heart broken and exhausted from the fighting, announced surrender on May 8. Without his ground troops, Geron Martoc proposed running and continueing the fight but upon news of the mass surrenders across the Empire, Geron Martoc, by orders from Tarnum, gave up his arms on May 9th ending Klingon resistance on the Romulan-Bulrathi front. 

Federation offensives

While the other fronts got bogged down in heavy fighting, it would be the main Federation offensive out of Rigel commanded by Admiral Jon E. Williams that would bring the decisive end to the conflict. The Klingons focused the bulk of their forces to stop the Federation offensive as Tarnum took personal command of the remnents of KIF II and KIF III to form the Qonos Defense Fleet. Williams pushed back the fleet and began his drive into the heart of the Klingon Empire with a massive Federation force. Another very large force under Manesh Patel maneuvered out of Orion space and into Klingon space in hopes of cutting off Geron Martoc’s force from Tarnum’s force. Tarnum decided to hit this force first and surprised the Federation in an ambush. Tarnum initially engaged Manesh Patel because he considered it the weaker of the two and worried that if Patel’s offensive continued, it would destroy Klingon resistance on the Romulan Front. Most importantly, Tarnum wanted an early victory to give his fleet experience and rally them to fight the perceived greater threat of the Fourth and Seventh Fleets commanded by Admiral Williams.

Battle of Ty’Gorok  
Date: January 20, 2311  
Outcome: Decisive Klingon Victory

Federation Second-Third Fleets  
Commander: Admiral Manesh Patel, Admiral Sulu

Heavy Cruisers (13): USS Resolution, USS Marie Curie, USS Neptune (Ambassador Class), USS Hope, USS USS Gilgriese, USS Excelsior, USS Warspite, USS Yorktown II, USS Iphegenia, USS Orion, USS Celka, USS Nisbus, USS Lusitane (Excelsior Class)

Cruisers (16): USS Hercules, USS Tula, USS USS Challenger, USS Saparro, USS Essex, USS Kitayushi, USS Gandhi, USS Xian, USS Copernicus, USS Illustrious, (Constitution Class), USS Nebula, USS Andromeda, USS Oglethorpe, USS Edison (Constellation Class), USS Coridan, USS Paladin (Saladin Class)

Light Cruisers: USS Alderan, USS USS Yuri Gagarin, USS Orater, USS Bozeman, USS Sonic (Armstrong Class), USS Miranda II, USS Camelot, USS Rigel, USS Bakial, USS Moltke, USS Samson, USS Antartic, USS Valentina Tereshkova, USS Haumea (Miranda Class)

Destroyers (19): USS Bynum, USS Keiji, USS Spock, USS Kyoto, USS Trill, USS Ceres (Soyuz Class); USS Paulus Potter, USS Journeyman, USS Maori, USS Melbourne Star (Mayflower Class), USS Antiochus, USS Companion, USS Corinth, USS Elba (Ptolemy Class), 5 Orion Destroyers

Unique Ship Classes: 1 First Federation Battleship, 7 Orion Frigates, 220 Federation Sabre Class Fighters

Casualties: USS Neptune, USS Hope, USS Warspite, USS Yorktown II, USS Celka, USS Lusitane, USS Tula, USS Sapparro, USS Kitayushi, USS Gandhi, USS Oglethorpe, USS Coridan, USS Paladin, USS Alderan, USS Orater, USS Soinc, USS Camelot, USS Bakial, USS Moltke, USS Antartic, USS Valentina Tereshkova, USS Bynum, USS Keiji, USS Trill, USS Journeyman, USS Melbourne Star, USS Corinth, 3 Orion Destroyers, 209 Sabre Fighters, 3 Orion Frigates

Qonos Defense Force:

Heavy Cruisers (13): 3 Vor’cha Class Cruisers, 10 Ktinga Battlecruisers

Cruisers: 21 D7 Cruisers

Destroyers/Light Ships (51): 16 Destroyers, 21 Bird of Preys, 14 D9 Frigates, 190 Fighters, 24 Bombers  
Commander: Emperor Tarnum

Ty’Gorok Defenses: 2 Starbases, 20 Gun Turrets, 2 D9 Frigates, 35 Fighters

Casualties: 2 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 9 D7 Cruisers, 8 Destroyers, 17 Bird of Preys, 10 D9 Frigates, 161 Fighters, 20 Bombers, Both Star Bases, 16 Gun Turrets lost. 

Description: The forces on paper looked about even but the Federation had superior fire power at this point in the war except for the new Vor’cha class Cruisers which were on par with the Ambassador. Tarnum had rushed production of the Vor’cha class and used one Vor’cha, the KIS Donatu, as his flagship. Tarnum hoped to lure the heavy cruisers of the Federation fleet into an ambush by large numbers of Klingon light craft. He needed to draw them away from the Federation fleet and crush them piecemeal. The location of his battle would prove to be effective as he chose a well-fortified Klingon world that would slow the Federation fleet. The Federation fleet destroyed both Klingon frigates from the local defense fleet and began engaging the starbases with only the loss of the USS Maori until Tarnum’s fleet arrived. Tarnum ordered an early sortie against the Federation fleet with his Bird of Preys and Fighters which was common tactic by the Klingons late in the war. The attack was successful at first as the Federation fleet was not in formation to use their mass phasor banks in defense. Manesh Patel was quick to get his fleet in formation but suffered the loss of the USS Tula, USS Nebula, USS Rigel, and USS Trill during the early sortie with the Klingons only losing one Bird of Prey and some fighters. The Federation also pulled their Sabre class fighters away from attacking the Ty’Gorok’s defenses to cover the Federation fleet.  
Manesh Petal and Sulu found their fleets in a bad situation, stuck between the Klingon Fleet and the planet. Fire was coming at them from almost all direction. Tarnum intentionally weakened a part of his line to lure the Federation into attacking the gap but secretly had more Bird of Preys and fighters waiting for the potential Federation offensive. Manesh proposed the attack to Sulu who worried it was a trick. Finally, they both decided the Federation fleet needed to break out and ordered the attack. They sent the Ambassadors and Excelsiors at the line first, confident that the extreme firepower and strength of the craft would demolish any Klingon vessel that would try to stop them. Tarnum ordered his light craft and fighters to pour it on the Federation flagships. The USS Resolution, Manesh’s flagship, took severe damage and Sulu order him to abandon the fleet. Several Excelsior craft were destroyed but Sulu kept his flag ship away from the fighting while Manesh withdrew. The Federation lines began to break and Tarnum ordered his heavy ships to flank the Federation fleet. With their heavy ships in front bogged down fighting the Klingon light craft, the Federation rear collapsed under the assault and the route was on. Sulu managed to fight through the light craft and escape, although with a battered and damaged fleet.

Outcome: The Federation 2nd and 3rd fleets, although not destroyed, were made useless for the rest of the year due to the ship losses and damage to the fleet. The Klingon light craft took heavy damage but Tarnum kept most of his heavier cruisers intact for a future battle with Jon E. Williams. Ty’Gorok was a major morale boost for the Klingons when they desperately needed it and a major blow to the Federation. The Klingons now believe they could hold off the invaders and began to rally on all fronts. The Romulan invaders got bogged down in the bloody, no win fight at Ursa while the Cardassians, Elerians, and their allies had similar problems in the Gorn Hegemony. Only the Federation Fourth and Seventh fleets remained as a major threat to the Klingon war effort. Tarnum’s great victorious stand against the Allies appeared to be playing out. William’s fleet continued to push further and Tarnum prepared for the major confrontation that loomed between the two forces.  
One famous event from the Battle of Ty’Gorok was the sacrifice of the Warspite which held off wave of Klingon ships trying to attack several retreating Federation vessels.

Prelude to Rura Penthe

Tarnum pulled back to regroup his fleet and allowed Williams to push deeper towards Qonos. He needed to engage Williams but wanted to wait until the right time. Tarnum lost a lot of Bird of Preys and Fighters in the battle and hoped his shipyards could repair more of them and put them into the fight before meeting Williams. Williams had a stronger fleet than the fleet commanded by Sulu and Manesh Patel. Tarnum knew this fact and saw the odds stacked against him. Emperor Tarnum’s victory at Ty’Gorok had rekindled belief in his old magic of winning against impossible odds and there was a general belief throughout the Klingon Empire that Tarnum would find a way to defeat William’s fleet. However, a growing number of Klingons felt that even a victory over this Fleet would not resolve this endless war. The Klingons, notorious warriors, were starting to grow tired from the endless conflict and endless death of the Tarnum wars. Furthermore, the campaigns from in 2311 had been some of the bloodiest fighting in the entire war.  
Tarnum was content to wear down Williams fleet by avoiding a direct confrontation until the time was right. Williams wanted to draw Tarnum into battle. He proposed turning his fleet towards Pheben and capture the system as a symbolic victory. If Pheben fell, it would start to cut Qonos away from the Cardassian front and most of the systems of the House of Martoc and House of Gorkin. However, Pheben was well defended and its supply routes had to be cut off. Williams moved along the border and finally decided to assault a minor prison mining system called Rura Penthe. The system had become a supply route for both Qonos and Pheben and was not as heavily fortified as other systems in the region. Tarnum would have to defend this system or risk being cut off from a third of the Klingon Empire. Tarnum had successfully delayed Williams for another three months to rebuild and repair his forces but now realize that he had to accept this fight.

The Battle of Rura Penthe  
Date: May 4, 2013  
Outcome: Decisive Federation Victory

Forces:

Federation Fourth and Seventh Fleet:

Heavy Cruisers: USS Ambassador, USS Declaration, USS Parsons, USS Bisa Wol (Ambassador Class), USS Resolution, USS Organia, USS Magnificent, USS Enterprise-B, USS Lexington-B, USS Bolivar, USS Farragut, USS Livingston, USS Repulse, USS Tecumseh, USS Benedetto Castelli, USS Mizar (Excelsior Class)

Cruisers (16): USS Phesis, USS Hood, USS Soryu, USS Phoenix, USS Jonathan Archer, USS Denobulan, USS Tolkien, USS Titan, USS James T. Kirk, USS Concord, USS Cushion, USS Trudgeon (Constitution Class), USS Prometheus, USS Equinox (Constellation Class), USS Resolve, USS Cochise (Saladin Class)

Light Cruisers (14): USS Galliant, USS Jah, USS Universal, USS Phantom, USS Trento, USS Borodino, USS Hammer, USS Reliant, USS Valiant, USS Martin Luther King Jr. (Miranda Class) USS Malta, USS Sprite, USS Patton, USS Spitfire (Armstrong Class) 

Destroyers (20): USS Santa Maria, USS Caravel, USS Galba, USS Pacer, USS Vostok (Mayflower Class), USS T'Pol, USS Celtic, USS Shran, USS Ulysses, USS Henry Hudson, USS P'Jem, USS Freedom (Soyuz Class), USS Hadrian, USS Archer, USS Tyre, USS Hoplite, USS Immortal, USS Socrates, USS Trireme, USS Palmyra (Ptolemy Class). 

315 Sabre Class Fighters, 30 Transport/Supply Vessels/Freighters

Command: Admiral Jonathon E. Williams (overall and Seventh Fleet), Admiral John Harriman (Fourth Fleet)

Casualties: USS Declaration heavily damaged, USS Phoenix, USS Cushion, USS Equinox, USS Galliant, USS Universal, USS Martin Luther King Jr, USS Patton, USS Pacer USS Shran, USS Freedom, USS Hadrian, and USS Socrates all lost. 161 Sabre Fighters destroyed and 1 Freighter lost.

Qonos Defense Force:

Heavy Cruisers (11): 3 Vor’cha Class Cruisers, 8 Ktinga Battlecruisers

Cruisers: 18 D7 Cruisers

Destroyers/Light Ships (51): 9 Destroyers, 19 Bird of Preys, 13 D9 Frigates, 105 Fighters, 21 Bombers, 20 Freighters armed with phasor banks. Heavy Planetary Phaser Banks based on Rura Penthe.  
Commander: Emperor Tarnum

Casualties: 1 Vor’cha Cruiser, 4 Ktinga Battlecruisers, 8 D7 Cruisers, 2 Destroyers, 10 Bird of Preys, 8 D9 Frigates, 81 Fighters, 3 Bombers, 7 Armed Freighters lost.

13 Armed Freighters, 1 Destroyer, 1 Bird of Prey, and 2 D9 Frigates surrendered to Federation forces. Rura Penthe surrendered not able to hold off ground invasions. 

1 Ktinga Battlecruiser, 3 D7 Cruisers, 1 Destroyer, and 2 Bird of Prey fled and never made it back to Tarnum’s lines. Later found in other parts of Empire after the surrender. 

Description: The Klingons expected a miracle of Tarnum. In truth he was vastly outnumbered and outgunned. Another advantage for the Federation was that the fleet was full of veteran ships, captains, and crews that had fought at Andoria, Rigel, the Romulan Front, the Tzenkethi campign, and other engagements throughout the war. Admiral Williams had taken the offensive and pressed Emperor Tarnum into a reactory position allowing Williams to engage Tarnum in a weakly fortified star system. Tarnum still felt he had a chance to ambush the Federation and gathered the renemants of his fleet together for a planned attack. Tarnum believed that even if he could just inflict minor damage and retreat in good order, the Federation would get bogged down and he could ambush their supply routes and force them to retreat. Tarnum’s battle strategy would involve several attempts at complicated maneuvers to lure Federation ships into ambushes and open holes to escape with his fleet. Admiral Williams planned to simple bunch the Klingon fleet together into a circle and engage it head on using his superior numbers to take them out.  
The Klingon Fleet arrived at Rura Penthe on May 3rd to relieve the planet with supplies and provide defensive equipment and troops. Surprising to the Klingons, no Federation ships were in the region. Tarnum proposed withdrawing back to Pheben but stalled for a day hoping to set an ambush if the Federation did arrive, believing that only part of the Federation fleet would attack Rura Penthe and he could inflict damage on that minor part of the fleet. Admiral Williams had anticipated the move when he first attacked Rura Penthe and ordered his ships out of the area to lure the Klingons there. He then attacked early on the morning of May 4 with his full fleet. The Klingons were caught by surprise and forced into a defensive. Tarnum deployed light craft to stall the Federation. Williams intentionally allowed the ships to stall his attack while he encircled the Tarnum’s force in a pocket of ships with the planet at his rear. All around the Klingons were Federation ships and escaping from the holes would mean heavy casualties. Tarnum was still confident he could break out as he had done at Ty’Gorok and decided to find a weak spot. Williams had data of Ty’Gorok and decided to set a weak spot to lure Tarnum. Tarnum did not attack suspecting the ambush and instead sent out fighters to try to harass certain areas of the Federation line. Williams, in a surprise move, ordered his fleet to launch an all-out attack on the heavy cruisers of the Klingon fleet while the lighter ships were engaged.  
Tarnum’s fleet began to take losses but he then thought he saw his window with the Federation fleet engaged to escape in good order. He fought his way through and ordered a general retreat through a couple of holes created by the Federation when they abandoned their lines to lauch the all-out attack. Williams pulled his fast ships out and engaged them in the retreat. At this time, the confusion and lack of discipline of the green Klingon crews among the units began to take its toll. The Federation ships stayed on course and hunted the Klingon ships engaging in excellent defensive and offensive maneuvers. The Klingon force grew chaotic. Tarnum lost control of his fleet and the battle turned into a route. Tarnum did what he could to gather ships up and get them back to Pheben. He was only successful in getting half his force into lines as other ships were knocked out by the Federation or fled far from the lines. 

Outcome: While Tarnum tried to gather the renemants of his fleet at Pheben, the Federation assaulted systems around Pheben and began to encircle Tarnum cutting him off from Qonos and leaving Qonos and most of the Klingon Empire unprotected from Federation attacks. The Bonoria system, which contained a major Klingon agricultural world, was captured on May 5 making matters worse for the Klingon war effort. The end began to be realized and Tarnum sent a small unarmed ship to meet Admiral William’s fleet. The ship hailed William’s flag ship the USS Ambassador on May 8 to announce the unconditional surrender of the Klingon Empire which had been previously requested by Federation hails during the Battle of Rura Penthe. 

The End of the War

Tarnum had left the battle of Rura Penthe in total despair. He tried to keep face among his troops but he spoke openly to his generals that it was over. He had gotten bottled up at Pheben and could not seriously stop Admiral Williams from invading Klingon territory or even attacking Qonos itself. Many of his commanders wanted to continue to fight but Tarnum replied back with, “It’s over. Everything will change now. The Klingons still have a future, it will be different then the one we dreamed together and we must stop the fighting to allow the next generation to succeed.” 

Between May 8-10, hails were sent throughout the entire Klingon Empire and to the Allied forces announcing the surrender of Tarnum and the defeat at Rura Penthe. From a strategic perspective, Tarnum had likely lost the battle even before it started as Williams had superior numbers, experienced crews, and superior ships. Williams had successful lured Tarnum into an easy engagement to take advantage of these odds. For the Federation, the war was to continue with the Sakkra but now they had large, experienced fleets to deploy and the Sakkra had no hope of stopping the Federation. 

Despite war with the Sakkra, the Federation did not totally re-deploy their entire fleet immediately as they needed to sort things out with the Klingon Empire and their occupied systems as well as determine the post-war future of the quadrant. Celebrations were held on Tzenkethi, Andoria, Vulcan, Earth, Romulus, Cardassia, Draconis, Orion, Fesarius, Fieras, Trilar, Benzar, Bolarius, P’Jem, Tellar, Trill, Berengaria, Denobulus, and other worlds throughout the Galaxy. 

Sporadic fighting continued as Gorn/Klingon units continued to engage Cardassians and Elerians in Gorn space while Bajor still remained a haven for terrorists and rebel movements that would take time for Cardassia to suppress. 

The Sakkra Conflict

The Federation where still at war with the Sakkra despite the Klingons surrender on May 9. The Sakkra command proposed a major offensive in June of 2311 hoping to make inroads against the Federation before the Federation could send reinforcements. The Sakkra plan was then to negotiate a more favorable situation. Admiral Timothy Thompson allowed them to push the Federation back while at the same time receiving more ships from the Federation. The Sakkra seized several systems and then sent diplomats out requesting peace. The Federation and Alkari both shot down the requests for peace noting that the Sakkra were demanding several of the systems they occupied to stay under Sakkra control. The Federation sent the Second Fleet under Manesh Patel to the region and they arrived by October of 2311. At this time, Timothy Thompson had not truly engaged the Sakkra in battle allowing their offensive to experience some success. The Sakkra also had not focused any attacks on the Alkari. With a second Federation fleet in the region, the two commanders proposed dual maneuvers to defeat the Sakkra. The November Offensive, as it was called, planned for Thompson’s Eighth Fleet to work with the Alkari Imperial Fleet to invade Sakkra space and cut off the Sakkra offensive from their homeland while the Second Fleet would keep the Sakkra engaged in combat to prevent them from diverting resources necessary to stop Thompson’s offensive. The attack began to show some success by December and they had driven Sakkra ships out of Alkrai space. The Sakkra began to fall back as the Federation fleets proved to be superior to anything the Sakkra could muster. Realizing their defeat was imminent the Sakkra command sent out another request for peace asking for pre-war boundaries restoration as well as providing two strategic systems to the Alkari. The two Allies agreed and a peace treaty was signed on January 30, 2311 officially ending the war. There were no major fleet engagements during the last year of this conflict, only minor ship to ship fighting. Despite that, the Battle of Deblus was a bloody planetary fight between Federation and Sakkra forces that caused the deaths of 10 million Federation soldiers and civilians as well as 8 million Sakkra troops/militia. The Sakkra had held off the Second Fleet from trapping them at the Battle of Cheltis in a quick and brilliant maneuver. It saved face and the Sakkra fleet for the negotiations, although the battle was minor in casualties as only 7 ships were lost between both sides.

The Post-War fate of the Nations

Each Empire and civilization was affected differently by the war and the outcome. 

Federation – The United Federation of Planets emerged from the conflict as the Quadrants military, economic, and moral leader. They saw the increase in their ranks with the addition of Trilar and Bolarius. By 2320, Betazed also joined the Federation. Although the Klingons were required to hand over some border systems to the Cardassians, Bulrathi, Gorn, and Romulans, the Federation was determined that all nations respect the sovereignty of the Klingon Empire in hopes of not seeing a repeat of the previous conflict which the Federation believed could have been prevented had the Federation been more active in Klingon politics before the Tarnum Wars. Overtime, the relationship between the Federation and Klingon Empire would become very cordial while the relationship with their former allies the Cardassians and Romulans would sour. The Romulan Star Empire would eventually start a Cold War with the Federation and began a major military and scientific buildup. The Cardassian-Romulan alliance would become the Federation’s main threat in the years to come. A Cold War would fall into place for the later half of next 50 years before the powers were pushed into an actual war.  
The Federation added several systems at the expense of the Klingons that had been disputed before the war. These systems would be a matter of contention with the Klingons but overall the two great Empires would be friends and allies after the war. The actions and philosophy of Tarnum after the war was to push the Klingons to become allies of the Federation for the future and although Tarnum was in prison and later released under the condition he could no longer hold any office of power in either a political or military role, he still had many supporters and could influence Klingon politics. Tarnum (his story being described below) became one of the major proponents of a Klingon-Federation alliance. The Klingons also grew close to the Federation because of the Federation’s willingness to assist in the Klingon rebuilding effort, the profitable trade relationships that developed between the two former enemies, and the Federation’s promise to defend Klingon sovereignty. The improvement in relationships with the Klingons caused a major de-militization effort along the Klingon, Orion, and Gorn borders by all sides while the Federation grew more concerned with the Romulan Star Empire and built their defenses along that border as well as the Cardassian, Elerian, Sakkra, and Gnolam borders.  
The Federation would try to become the peacekeepers in the galaxy. The Federation pushed unsuccessful for Cardassia to recognize an independent Bajor. They also pushed unsuccessful for the Romulans to withdraw from Silicoid space and opposed Romulan attempts to control the government and workings of the Darlok Empire. The Federation would get embroiled in the trade war between the Gnolams and Ferengi which was a proxy war for the larger Cold War with Cardassia, Breen, and Draconis supporting Gnol and the Federation, along with Tholian Assembly and Psilon Alliance, supporting Ferenginar. The sides had already started to form before the Tarnum wars were even over and a bloody border fight between the Breen Confederacy and Tholian Assembly nearly brought the entire area to war once again. Both sides finally found peace but their borders were built up by resource and financial support from each side of the Cold War alliances and this border dispute became a part of the greater Cold War. 

Klingon Empire – The Klingon Empire was forever changed by the conflict. The Klingons had known nothing for war for almost 100 years starting with the original Klingon-Federation war, followed by civil war, and the Tarnum Wars. While the other wars were mostly forgotten or looked down upon in Klingon history, the Tarnum Wars became a sense of pride. Tarnum became a legend to Klingons and the era was seen to Klingons as a time of great courage and pride. Most notable, the Klingons tended to emphasis the stories of his victories over the Romulans and Cardassian aggressors rather than his conflict and occupation of other nations, although some of his largest victories were against the Federation such as the Battle of Ty’Gorok.  
The Klingons thrived in peacetime despite not giving up their warrior code. They began to emphasis honor and took that to mean respecting friendships and treaties. The Federation slowly grew into a great ally after the war and this forever changed the Klingons diplomatically. The warrior energy tended now to favor the idea of fighting for the noble ideals that the Federation and some of her other allies, like the Psilons, espoused. While the Klingon Empire before had favored aggression and conquest, the Klingon Empire slowly emerged after the conflict as a nation that favored defense of the quandrant and the status quo. The Klingons also saw their international relationships with the Gorn, Bulrathi, and Orions improve. Once the Gorn Hegemony emerged from chaos and civil war, the Klingon Empire and Gorn Hegemony became heavy economic partners and military allies. The Klingons were able to form brotherhoods with the Bulrathi and Gorn through diplomacy that they had failed to form through occupation. The Klingon Empire supported the Federation, Ferengi, and Psilon Alliance in the coming Cold War with the Romulan Star Empire. The Klingons considered the Romulans to be treacherous and villainous. The Romulan invasions during the Klingon civil war as well as the occupation of Romulus during the Tarnum Wars forever stained Klingon and Romulan relations. The two Empires would rarely see eye to eye in the future as they had once during the Klingon-Federation war. The Klingons also saw their relationship with the Cardassians sour. The Klingons saw the Cardassians as opportunists and aggressors. The Klingon-Gorn Alliance had already partially been formed during the war by the Gorn resistance to the Cardassia and Allies invasions. After the war, the two nations had no trouble engaging in joint defense plans and military build-ups against a possible Cardassian threat.  
Klingon culture as mentioned, down played their previous aggression but did talk of Tarnum as the great leader that nearly brought the galaxy to its knees. Klingon generals wanted to imitate Tarnum. The Klingon Empire, despite becoming more peaceful and economically focused, often jumped at the chance of war. The Klingon Empire eagerly entered the Cardassian-Romulan War 60 years later to assist the Federation and their allies and the Tarnum cult was heavy among many of Klingon warriors during the war. Tarnum and Kahless would be remembered as the two greatest Klingon warriors ever and the model that all Klingon warriors should follow.

Romulan Star Empire - The Romulan Star Empire, surprisingly, formed a smooth regime after the war despite the chaos that was occuring during the war. This was assisted partially by threats of violence. Prelate Nagar and the former Imperial faction that had survived the originally invasion and held territory in Silicoid space were the political successors over the rebel faction to control of the Romulan Star Empire. As a result, the Romulans retained an aggressive and isolation policy. This policy would have not been shared by the more pro-Federation rebel faction.  
The new Praetor Nagar pushed two major policies in the Romulan Star Empire, Military build-up and Scientific development. Nagar framed his policy under a moto, “Never again!” He vowed the Romulan Star Empire would never be occupied by foreign invaders. Nagar, above all, wanted a Romulan Star Fleet that could rival the Federation and any other power in the galaxy. The Nagar regime also formed the Tal Shiar, a powerful spy organization to manipulate both internal policies of the Empire as well as policies abroad. The Tal Shiar’s early objectives included putting a “friendly” regime in control of the Darlok Empire. The Romulans seized several Darlok systems after the war which they claimed was retribution for the Darlok’s cooperative occupation with the Klingons. The Darlok Empire itself fell under dominion of the Romulan Star Empire and the Darlok leadership was a puppet regime of their more powerful Romulan neighbors. The Romulans also attempted invasions of Meklar space which met with mixed results. The Romulans could not subdue the Meklar but did seize several of their border systems and knocked out any future threat from the Meklar to the Romulan Star Empire. The Romulans got heavily involved with Orion and Bulrathi politics trying to push both peoples into their fold. The Orion Syndicate vowed it would be neutral in the Cold War but the Tal Shiar often meddled into their affairs. The Romulan meddling into other nations’ affairs pushed Ursa and the Bulrathi Empire into an eventual alliance with their former enemies, the Klingon Empire. Despite not always being successful in the foreign policy sphere, the Romulans were able to construct an advanced fleet that would rival the Klingons and become a threat to the Federation and peace in the quadrant.  
The Romulan aggression and desire to rival the Federation would eventually lead to the Romulan-Cardassian War 60 years later. During the Cold War leading up to this conflict, both the United  
Federation of Planets and Romulan Star Empire considered each other to be their top rivals and enemies. The Romulans, under the Nagar regime, would become the second most powerful force in the quadrant until the arrival of the Insectoids and Dominion (which brought two additional wars that saw Romulus enter into an alliance with both the Federation and Klingon Empire for its survival).  
Romulan culture took on a mentality of strength over morality as they ignored ethics for the sake of the defense and growth of the Empire. 

Cardassian Union - Despite the heavy loss of life and invasion, the Cardassian Union would emerge from the war in a stronger position then before the war. This was likely due to the Cardassian development of technology, the rallying of the citizens before the war, and the weakening of the Tzenkethi Empire and Klingon Empire’s influence in the area. Cardassia found Bajor more difficult to hold after the war as Bajor had a taste of freedom and the Klingons had provided training and weapons to the Bajorans during the war that gave them tactics to fight the Cardassian occupation more efficiently. Bajor would continue to receive moral support from the Federation, Klingon Empire, and Psilon Alliance as all three powers pushed for the creation of an indepedent Bajoran Republic and an end to the Cardassian occupation. On Bajor, Tarnum was a hero. Cardassia, however, began to ban the teachings of Tarnum. The Cardassians continued to expand their influence after the war. The tri-pact with the Breen Confederacy and Elerian Empire helped to secure Cardassian power in the region and the Cardassians expanded their military influence into both of their allies. The Cardassian population increased and their scientific technology exploded. Cardassian ships became more powerful and were upgraded to a level where they could fight one on one with Klingon and Federation ships.  
Cardassia took in many new systems including the Son’a homeworld. They also expanded trade heavily and didn’t close their borders to outsiders like the Romulans. The Cardassians meddled heavily into the Gnolam Confederacy trying to support the growth of Gnolam trade. Cardassian traders grew rich off the trade and brought untold wealth to the Union. The Cardassians made the Gnolam Confederacy a protectorate of the tri-pact alliance and armed Gnolam mauraders who often attacked trade routes of the Ferengi and defended against Ferengi mauraders. Cardassian warhips at times often intervened in the fight.  
Besides the tri-pact, the Cardassians also signed an alliance with the Romulan Star Empire against the Federation. The Cardassians, unlike the Romulans, did not see the Federation as a main threat nor have any ambition on destroying the Federation. However, The Cardassians did have a dispute over Federation border systems and considered the Federation to be a thorn in their desire to control and influence their region of the quadrant. The Federation, Klingons, and a lesser extent the Psilons would often armed and support factions such as the Tholians and Ferengi that rivaled the Tri-pact while the Tri-pact and Romulus would fund the other factions creating proxy wars. The two best examples of these new Cold War conflicts in the sector were the Trade Wars and the Tholian-Breen conflicts.  
Cardassians used the Tarnum Wars as a rally cry against the Klingons when conflict broke out. The Cardassians warned of the great Gorn-Klingon threat that would threaten their Empire. The Cardassian border with both nations was heavily fortified, moreso than the border with the Breen Confederacy, Gnolam Confederacy, or Federation. It was said that the Cardassian Cold War focus was more against the Klingons than the Federation, as the Federation was mere meddlers to the Cardassian brass. The Cardassians would end up honoring their alliance to Romulus when the Romulan went to war with the Federation.  
Cardassian military revolved around the tactics of Legate Lobum of mass formations and attacks. The later developed Galor Class would be perfect for these tactics although the Keldon class took on more of a capital ship role which the Cardassians planned to utilize in engagements with other smaller Empires. The Cardassians adopted strong defense systems and focused heavily on planetary defenses and other unique equipment capable of repeling system invasions. Cardassian industry and robotics became top notch. Cardassia would overtime continue to remain as a major threat until the Dominion Wars, Insectoid Wars, and Cardassian Civil War which split, weakened, and ruined the Cardassians. Ultimately a new Cardassia would emerge from these conflicts and threaten the Alpha Quadrant as Tarnum once did.  
The Obisidan Order grew in influence after the war and the time between the Tarnum Wars and the Klingon-Cardassian conflict was considered the height of Obsidian Order power. Although more focused on internal loyalty, the Obsidian Order acted like the Tal Shiar, at times, jumping into foreign policies as well. The Obisidian Order’s meddling into Elerian affairs would later damage the relationship between the two strong allies. After the Romulan-Cardassian War, the Obsidian Order would decline and eventually go extinct by the time of the Dominion alliance/occupation and the split of the Cardassian Union into the “two Cardassias” leading to a time of violent civil wars and turbulence among the Cardassian people.

Tzenkethi Empire - The Tarnum Wars was a major time of decline for the Tzenkethi. The Empire that once rivaled the Klingons fell significantly behind both its powerful neighbors the Cardassian Union and Klingon Empire. The Tzenkethi became very isolated and avoided the Cold War. They would eventually be drawn into the later Romulan-Cardassian war on the side of the Federation/Klingon alliance and provided some help in destroying the Tri-Pact. Despite this, Tzenkethi ships were often hostile to Federation ships as well. The Tzenkethi did not reach the Meklar level of isolation and hostility, however, as they often found themselves fighting with the Federation and other powers against hostile invaders of the quadrant such as the Insectoids, Dominion, and the Borg.

Gorn Hegemony - The Gorn Hegemony suffered heavily from the Tarnum Wars, arguably worse than the Klingon Empire, and it would take decades to rebuild. To make matters worse, the Gorn Hegemony had no government after the war and the Allies attempt to form a post-war state resulted in a cluster of systems with no leadership. The Gorn forces, with assistance from some Klingon units, continued to fight Cardassian and Elerian forces even after the armistice and this bloody conflict only ended after threats by the Federation forced the Cardassians and Elerians to negotiate an agreement to withdraw all forces by the end of 2311. Cardassia and Draconis continued to build up more troops in the Gorn Hegemony before the withdrawal in December to defend their own forces which only escalated the fighting. After the withdrawal of Allied forces in December, the Gorn continued to fight each other.  
The Gorn civil war cost the lives of another 5 million Gorn. Fortunately, the fighting was mostly on the homeworld with sporadic fighting at Cestus and Lupra. Jorda, one of the political rivals for the throne, eventually had his rival Karmish assassinated and the opposition fell apart. Jorda took control of the Gorn Hegemony as dicatator and expanded his party’s influence to dominate all of the Gorn worlds. He supported the rebuild effort but also militarized the Hegemony heavily which wasted resources needed for economic development. He was ousted in 2328 by Jerla the Noble who set up a government modeled on the Klingon High Council in hopes of creating legitimacy and avoiding factions fighting openly. He also requested aid from the Federation and the Klingons in rebuilding the Hegemony. Under Jerla, the Hegemony would continue the rebuilding effort and develop a strong economy of trade with the Klingons. The Gorn Hegemony would grow closer to the Klingons out of fear of the Cardassians. Talks of Tarnum were usually positive among the Gorn and during the Jorda dictatorship, Tarnum had visited Gorn twice and spoke highly of the Gorn race. The Gorn continued to push Tarnum’s initial idea of the Gorn-Klingon brotherhood and this brotherhood would push them to assist the Federation-Klingon Alliance in future wars against the Cardassian-Romulan alliance, Dominion, and Insectoids. The latter war saw an Insectoid invasion of the Hegemony which was more devastating to the Gorn people than the Tarnum Wars. 

Orion Syndicate - The Orion Empire was left in ruins after the war and slowly emerged into a new organization, the Orion Syndicate. The Orion Syndicate had existed all along in the Empire but it took over the government as the Syndicate was able to use the destruction of the Orion Empire’s institutions and military strength to overthow the Imperial Monarch. The Orions would organize smuggling and other illegal activities between the Klingon Empire, Federation, and Romulan Star Empire. The government tried to play neutral but the region was often a site of clandestine activity between the two Cold War factions. The Orion’s military power declined significantly after the war. Having been a huge faction in the Klingon-Romulan War, the Orions had been defeated quickly by Tarnum and their reputation destroyed. With no clear stability in their systems, a weakened government, and declining economy, the Orions would never be able to recapture the power they once held before the Tarnum Wars. The Orion Syndicate did not encourage any rememberance of the war or the veterans that fought in it. The Orions rarely talked about the Tarnum Wars after the conflict. Despite this, the Tarnum wars brought tremendous change to Orion society with the replacement of a stable Monarchy with a corrupt government and an occupation by the Klingons that tended to eliminate Orions confidence in their galactic standing.

Sakkra Empire - The Sakkra were a minor player in the war but opened a new front that presented a threat for the Federation at a desparate time. The Sakkra Empire would increase in size and power after the war eventually growing larger than the Klingon Empire and Romulan Star Empire. The Sakkra Empire never truly took sides in the Cold War and remained belligerent to the Federation and Alkari Empire. However, the Sakkra Empire supported the Silicoids in their conflict with the Romulans and engaged Romulan ships openly in Silicoid during the Cold War years. The Sakkra feared the Romulans would eventually expand into Sakkra space once they enveloped the large Silicoid Union. The Sakkra Empire went to war with the Federation and Alkari during the Cardassian-Romulan Conflict but were defeated eventually by the Federation after a long war. The Sakkra would eventually become an ally of the Federation and were a major factor in aiding the Federation and Allies in defeating the Insectoids. The Sakkra also fought against the Dominion in the previous Dominion war and joined Federation Summits held to discuss efforts by the quadrant powers to fight the Borg.  
The Sakkra-Alkari rivalry lasted until the Alkari Empire joined the Federation sometime after the Dominion war. By this time the rivalry was dying down and the Sakkra Empire was starting to be content with their current borders and expanding out in other directions away from Federation space. 

Breen-Tholian War

The Breen Confederacy and Tholian Assembly saw little of the Tarnum conflict. They were too far away from combatent space to be threatened. The Breen Confederacy was a mator factor as a late comer in battles at Bajor and in Gorn space. The Breen Confederacy used the conflict for diplomatic purposes to help isolate the Tholian Assembly by forming an alliance with both the Cardassian Union and Elerian Empire. The Tholian Assembly would eventually have to reach out the Psilon Alliance and United Federation of Planets to help them combat Breen aggression. The Breen, with their new allies, remained an ever-present threat to peace. The Breen and Tholians fought a border war that saw little territory taken by either force from April 2311 to September 2314 before an armistice was finally signed. The conflict caused the Breen Confederacy to not be a player in the diplomatic wrangling between the major powers over the fate of the Klingon Empire and their territories after the Tarnum War. The Tri-Pact wanted the Breen to continue the border war since the Klingon conflict had ended and both Cardassia and Draconis could eventually supply enough arms that the Breen would overwhelm the Tholians. Both Cardassia and Draconis had even debated direct intervention in the Breen-Tholian conflict but were weary that it would cause war with the Psilons and Federation. 

Cold War

The end of one conflict left a power void that would eventually result in another conflict. Most of the remaining powers and nations that fought in the Tarnum wars would get caught up again in this later conflict. The space and region that Tarnum controlled became more peaceful and pro-Federation in the years after the conflict. The Klingons, Gorns, and Bulrathi all learned to work with each other and become peaceful allies. The Mrrshan Empire, still had distrust of the Klingons, but the greater Romulan threat drove them to better relations with the Klingons. The Klingon Empire became an object of stability for this region of space and brought prosperity through trade with the Federation, Ferengi, Psilons and the regional powers. This development would cause this entire sector of space to rally in support of the Federation against the Romulans and Tripact once war erupted.  
The Cold War was held on numerous fronts. Early on, the Romulans were involved in Bulrathi and Mrrshan rebuilding and hope to form an alliance with or gain hegemony over both races by establishing pro-Romulan regimes. This failed. Other endeavors were partially successful as Romulus did manage to achieve this with the Darloks and arguably the Orion Syndicate was more supportive of Romulus than Earth throughout the Cold War.  
The Orion Syndicate would become a battleground as Federation and Klingon intervention was required at times to stop the crime network. This crime network was heavily backed by the Tal Shiar who hoped to fomit chaos in the area. The area became a battleground between Section 31, the Tal Shiar, and Klingon secret service as all fought to destroy or protect (depending on the sides) Orion Syndicate cells. The Orion Syndicate was not the only battleground of the Cold War.  
Bolarius was another fight, despite being a Federation member. Romulus always coveted Bolarius and tried to push anti-Federation movements among the population. This failed miserably and Bolarians became very xenophobic towards Romulans.  
Another battlefield was the Breen-Tholian conflicts. The Federation wanted to prevent occupation of the Tholian Assembly while the Tri-Pact supported their member, the Breen Confederacy, who considered the Tholians to be their arch-enemies. The two races would hate each other until the Insectoid Wars when both races would be forced to rise-up and rebel together against a common enemy.  
The Gnolam Empire, arguable a fourth member to the Tripact in spirit, fought a trade war with the Ferengi to control markets in the area. This trade war often opened into real fighting with privateering being a common profession in both nations and a tool to raid trade routes. The privaterring attacks became common place and required all of the quadrant powers to arm their freighter fleets in the sector. Both sides used this sector to test out new weaponry on their rivals and guage rival strength.  
Eventually, the distruction of Romulan freighters by the Ferengi resulted in a serious of diplomatic conflicts that would cause open war. 60 years after the Klingon conflict, the sector would once again be thrown into conflict. This would be the first of a series of wars that would only conclude after the final defeat of the Insectoid invasion. It would be the Dominion and later the Insectoids and Borg threats that would finally bring the different powers of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants together.

Tarnum’s life after the conflict

Tarnum was taken into Federation custody as a term of the unconditional surrender. Many of the powers wanted him killed, but the Federation decided that it wouldn’t be wise to create a matyr. Tarnum was put on trial for warcrimes and sentence to twenty years inprisonment. The judge did not give Tarnum life imprisonment because the defense provided evidence of specific requests by Tarnum for his soldiers to avoid civilian casualties during the war. After a year and half of imprisonment, Tarnum was permitted to receive visitors and began to see many people. He became popular among citizens of the Federation who wanted to meet the Emperor that once threatened the galaxy. Tarnum wrote often during his time. He wrote about the ongoing wars. When asked, what was his biggest mistake of the war? Tarnum was noted to laugh and say, “Attacking the Federation.” Another mistake that historians often cite to was Tarnum’s removal of commanders, too quickly, which created a weaker command staff that failed him at Lerga Yoga. Tarnum asked too much of the Klingons in situations such as the invasion of Vulcan, which was a huge stretch on his resources and an offensive from which the Klingons never truly recovered.  
Tarnum showed his charismatic nature in prison to his guests changing views towards him, even from enemies. During the time in prison, Tarnum changed his view on the Klingon Empire and its role in the galaxy. He became a supporter of the pro-Federation regime in the Klingon Empire and pushed for the idea of the peaceful Klingon warrior which was a surprise to both his critics and friends. Many Tarnum veterans still desired war as in the old days, but as time passed the Klingon Empire took on this new identity of the peaceful warrior. Tarnum’s imprisonment was reduced to house arrest three years into his sentence and he was sent from a Federation penal colony to Alpha Centauri and eventually Earth. Ironically, his feet walked on the capitol world of the Federation that he so desired to conquer within less than five years after the war ended.  
As the Cold War slowy began, he was forgotten among most of the Allied powers as they had new enemies. This allowed the Federation to eventually free him and returned to his people during the tenth year of imprisonment without incident. The Federation had allowed Tarnum to see Klingon visitors by his sixth year of imprisonment and he was familiar with current Klingon politics. Tarnum spent his later life in retirement, entertaining guests, and writing letters to members of the Klingon High Counsel advising them on Klingon policies and his vision of a future Klingon Empire that enforced peace and justice in the sector. Tarnum visited Gorn several times pushing for stronger Gorn-Klingon relations. He was instrumental in building future diplomatic ties between the two peoples.  
Tarnum’s family would enjoy wealth and status that he did not experience. Tarnum was born into humble roots. His grandson would eventually become Chancellor and would lead the Klingons during the Cardassian-Romulan conflict. Tarnum did not live to see this new conflict dying in 2330. Tarnum would go down as a legend to not just the Klingons but many races around the galaxy for his military genius. He would also be remembered by some as the cause of billions of deaths in a series of destructive wars. The Romulans, for example, remember his time as a dark moment in their history. Overall, history would look on Tarnum as more of a victim than an aggressor. He was raised up in a Klingon Empire already under attack from foreign enemies and in the midst civil war. He pulled the Klingon Empire out of anarchy and led it on the course of a war against its enemies that eventually brought it to defeat, once again, after a long struggle. His later years would be memorable as he pushed for the Klingons to work with their former enemies to seek peace and created the image in Klingon society as the honorable warrior that defends the weak and encourages a state of peace. Tarnum praised the Federation in his writings. He talked often of the freedom and virtue espoused by the Federation. He also praised the openness of its people and was impressed by the strong economy that he noticed during his visits to the Federation worlds. He praised humans for their tenacity under fire and their abilities as warriors. This praise was huge in changing Klingon views of the Federation and Humanity. Tarnum also praised the Federation for protecting the Klingons and their sovereignty after the war from what he considered to be the true threats to the Klingons: the Romulans and Cardassians. Tarnum’s later years were just as crucial as his early years. He brought war and destruction to the quadrant and yet he was also instrumental in created the post-war Klingon Empire that would serve as an instrumental ally of peace, open trade, and freedom for future generations.


End file.
